Parliamentary Committee Notes: Actions By RCMP On Auto Theft – Joint Investigative Teams And Partnerships
Proposed response
- The police of jurisdiction have the primary responsibility to investigate stolen vehicle offences. Any specific questions related to stolen vehicle investigations or prosecutions should be directed to the police of jurisdiction.
- The RCMP is engaged with provincial and municipal partners to combat auto theft, and to ensure that the criminals are held to account. For example, members from the RCMP are participating in integrated taskforces led by the Ontario Provincial Police and the Sûreté du Québec.
- The RCMP has a network of liaison officers and analysts deployed around the world to work with our international partners. For example, RCMP liaison officers posted in Italy recently collaborated with Italian authorities when 251 cars stolen in Canada were seized in an Italian port.
- The Government of Canada is investing $3.5 million in INTERPOL’s transnational vehicle crime project. This work will support law enforcement agencies around the world to enhance information sharing and investigative tactics for identifying and retrieving stolen vehicles.
- Recently, the RCMP has integrated data from the Canadian Police Information Centre (one of the primary national information-sharing systems that is used by police from across Canada to enter information about stolen vehicles) with INTERPOL’s Stolen Motor Vehicle Database. This means that information on vehicles stolen in Canada is now accessible to the international law enforcement community.
If pressed on RCMP’s collaboration with other law enforcement agencies or integrated police taskforces:
- The RCMP is involved Project RECHERCHER, an integrated vehicle theft team led by the Sûreté du Québec and other municipal police services. It aims to target criminal groups in Canada that are responsible for the overseas export of stolen vehicles.
- The RCMP is involved in Project VECTOR, an operation led by the Ontario Provincial Police. Project VECTOR brings together federal, provincial, and municipal police forces in Ontario and Québec to integrate intelligence and enforcement capabilities, with the objective of disrupting organized crime activities on stolen vehicles at all stages of the outbound criminal supply chain.
- This RCMP is involved in Project EMISSION, an initiative led by the Ontario Provincial Police focused on combatting auto theft in Ontario. The RCMP supports the project’s access to INTERPOL and the RCMP’s international network to ensure that information and intelligence flows efficiently.
If pressed on how police handle stolen vehicles with tracking devices (e.g., Air Tags):
- The RCMP is working with the Ontario Provincial Police, Sûreté du Québec, and the Canada Border Services Agency to develop a common protocol for law enforcement coordination between jurisdictions on retrieving stolen vehicles with tracking devices.
- Any information about a stolen vehicle’s location should be reported to the police of jurisdiction where the theft occurred (originating agency).
Background / Current Status
From a federal policing perspective, the RCMP is responsible for combatting threats to Canada, such as serious organized crime groups operating at the international level. The RCMP works closely to strengthen strategic and operational partnerships with domestic and international partners to disrupt illicit markets and dismantle criminal groups.
While the investigation of auto theft falls under the local police of jurisdiction in Canada, the RCMP is supporting work being done at the provincial and municipal levels to address this issue. For example:
- [REDACTED] the RCMP’s National Port Enforcement Team has been participating in Project RECHERCHER in Quebec. This Integrated Vehicle Theft Team, led by the Sûreté du Québec and other municipal police services, aims to target criminal groups in Canada that are responsible for the overseas export of stolen vehicles. The RCMP’s involvement is limited to the exportation aspect of the crime, specifically out of the Port of Montreal.
- [REDACTED] the RCMP’s National Port Enforcement Team are also involved in Project VECTOR – a multi-jurisdictional operation led by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) that is focused on the identification and interdiction of stolen vehicles. Project VECTOR brings together federal, provincial, and municipal police forces in Ontario and Québec to integrate our intelligence and enforcement capabilities. This team is working together to disrupt organized crime activities on stolen vehicles at all stages of the outbound criminal supply chain.
- This RCMP is involved in Project EMISSION, an OPP-led initiative focused on Ontario stolen cars with a domestic focus. The RCMP’s engagement is focused on providing access to the capabilities of INTERPOL and the RCMP’s international network. Direct engagement by the RCMP allows for a quick and efficient flow of information and requests resulting to/from the province of Ontario both on the intelligence and enforcement side.
The RCMP also has a network of liaison officers and analysts deployed around the world to work with our international partners. For example, RCMP liaison officers posted in Italy recently collaborated with Italian authorities when 251 cars stolen in Canada were seized in an Italian port.
From a national policing perspective, the RCMP is the steward of common tools and databases that are needed and used by law enforcement agencies across Canada. The RCMP hosts the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC), a national information-sharing system that is used by police from across Canada to enter information about stolen vehicles, criminals and other criminality.
In February, the RCMP integrated the CPIC’s stolen vehicle information with INTERPOL’s Stolen Motor Vehicle Database. The CPIC database currently contains details on approximately 145,000 vehicles stolen in Canada. This information is now accessible to the international law enforcement community. Through the enhanced information shared with INTERPOL, international law enforcement agencies will be able to run checks against a vehicle to determine if it has been reported as stolen in Canada. In the first 6 weeks of the integration with INTERPOL’s database, there were more than 1000 international partner queries that matched to Canadian stolen motor vehicle records and many new direct requests for international collaboration.
On February 21, 2024, the Government of Canada announced funding of $3.5 million to support INTERPOL’s joint transnational vehicle crime project. This project will support law enforcement agencies around the world to enhance information sharing and investigative tactics for identifying and retrieving stolen vehicles.
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