15 people have been arrested and 73 charges have been laid out in a joint task force investigation involving the Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS).
Dubbed ‘Project Big Rig’, the investigation began back in March as police units looked into a prolific series of tractor trailer and cargo thefts in Peel and across the Greater Toronto Area. This resulted in the disruption of the criminal ring and led to the arrests of several individuals responsible for theft of tractor trailers and cargo. The investigation also led to awareness for a number of unsuspecting customers who were buying stolen products.
Project Big Rig resulted in:
- Total of 15 arrests with 73 charges laid.
- Recovery of $6,990,000 of stolen cargo.
- Recovery of $2,250,000 in value of stolen tractor trailers.
- Total value of $9,240,000 in property recovered.
The arrests and charges include:
- Balkar Singh, 42-years-old:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Ajay Ajay, 26-years-old:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Manjeet Padda, 40-years-old:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Jagjeevan Singh, 25-years-old:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime (x2)
- Breach of Recognizance (x2)
- Amandeep Baidwan, 41-years-old:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime (x4)
- Fail to Comply with Release Order
- Breach of Probation
- Karamshand Singh, 58-years-old:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Trafficking in Stolen Goods
- Jasvinder Atwal, 45-years-old:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Fail to Comply with Release Order (x2)
- Operation While Prohibited
- Lakhvir Singh, 45-years-old:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Mischief Over $5000
- Jagpal Singh, 34-years-old:
- Break, Enter and Commit an Indictable Offence (x2)
- Theft of Motor Vehicle
- Theft Over $5000
- Upkaran Sandhu, 31-years-old:
- Break, Enter and Commit an Indictable Offence
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Sukhvinder Singh, 44-years-old:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime (x2)
- Fail to Comply with Undertaking (x2)
- Kulvir Bains, 39-years-old:
- Theft of Motor Vehicle (x3)
- Theft Over $5000 (x3)
- Banishidar Lalsaran, 39-years-old:
- Theft of Motor Vehicle (x2)
- Shobit Verma, 23-years-old:
- Theft of Motor Vehicle
- Sukhninder Dhillon, 34-years-old:
- Break and Enter Commit an Indictable Offence
- Theft of Motor Vehicle (x4)
- Theft Over $5000 (x4)
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Theft of Mail
- Operation while Prohibited (x2)
- Fail to Comply with Release Order
“Cargo and auto theft is not a victimless crime. It hurts people, inflicts financial harm and often leads to the funding of other criminal activity,” says Deputy Chief Nick Milinovich. “Project Big Rig is an example of our efforts to hold the individuals accountable who victimize our communities and residents. Let this be a reminder to all the criminal networks that we will continue to disrupt criminality of any kind.”
This investigation was made possible through the funding provided by the Criminal Intelligence Service Ontario (CISO), and in collaboration with Halton Regional Police, Toronto Police Service, York Regional Police, Ontario Provincial Police, Équité Association and the Financial Transaction and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC.)
An estimated $1.8 billion worth of goods travel through the Region of Peel every day, making it the largest cargo hub in Canada.
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