Toronto Police Auto Theft Investigation Leads to Over 550 Vehicles Recovered, 119 People Arrested

An ongoing investigation into vehicle and catalytic converter thefts in Toronto called Project Stallion has amounted to 300 charges laid and over 550 vehicles recovered. Of the 119 people arrested, a lot of them are of Indian-origin and some of them have multiple charges against their names.

Project Stallion was launched in November of last year by 22 and 23 Divisions in collaboration with OCIS. The objective of this operation is to reduce the number of catalytic converter thefts, and the number of stolen vehicles. Till now, the operation has led to the recovery of 556 stolen vehicles worth more than $27 million, and 314 charges laid against 119 people.

A significant number of people that have been arrested are of Indian-origin and some of them have multiple charges against them.

Police Chief Myron Demkiw said, “Vehicle thefts in Toronto have more than doubled since 2019, making it a significant issue in our city and across the GTA. Project Stallion is an example of the actions Toronto Police are taking in our local communities to tackle this growing problem. The Toronto Police Service, including our OCIS team and police divisions, are working in alignment to recover stolen vehicles and hold people who commit these crimes to account.”

Detective Sergeant Wehby shared that vehicle thefts are not exclusive to the GTA but have become a provincial, national, and international problem. “Investigators are working around the clock in collaboration with our partners in policing, government agencies, industry and our communities. Project Stallion is an example of how intelligence-led and information sharing can help us tackle this growing problem,” he added.

Some of the people arrested include:

5. Nirmal DHILLON, 47, of Caledon, was charged with:

   Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

   Dangerous Operation of a Conveyance

   Fail to Comply with Probation Order

6. Sukhwinder GILL, 40, of Woodbridge, was charged with:

   Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

7. Jagjit BHINDER, 40, of Brampton, was charged with:

   Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

8. Clark BIENAIMELALANNE, 18, of Montreal, Quebec, was charged with:

   Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

9. Iqbal HAYER, 50, of Toronto, was charged with:

   Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

10. Pardeep GREWAL, 38, of Brampton, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

11. Paul BLEPO, 19, of Angus, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Under

    Fail to Attend Court

    Possession of Automobile Master Key

12. Halleigh SMITH-CRIPPS, 18, of Holland Landing, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

13. Cris CASTRO, 44, of Toronto, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

14. Jiten PATEL, 31, of Toronto, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Under

15. Varinder KAILA, 32, of No Fixed Address, was charged with:

    Attempt Theft

    Mischief Under

16. Markus MALVERICK, 34, of North York, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

17. Minh Van DUONG, 62, of North York, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

    Possession of Automobile Master Key

    Tampering with VIN

18. Jamal AZAWI, 62, of Mississauga, was charged with:

    Three counts of Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

    Trafficking in Property Obtained by Crime Over

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Under

19. Nelson CASTELLANO, 51, of Toronto, was charged with:

    Fraud Over

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

    Possession of an Identity Document

16. Ibrahim HEMAID, 35, of Toronto, was charged with:

    Two counts of Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

17. Gurveen RANOUTE, 26, of Brampton, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Under

    Four counts of Fraud Under

18. Abderrezak BOUKHAROUBA, 18, of Montreal, Quebec was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

19. Ramanpreet SINGH, 29, of Mississauga, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

20. Gagandeep SINGH, 23, of No Fixed Address, was charged with:

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Over

    Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Under

    Two counts of Possession of A Scheduled Substance for the Purpose of Trafficking

    Obstruct Peace Officer

Vineet Washington