Ottawa to explore tougher auto-theft penalties, curb access to tools used by bandits

The Liberal government is looking to put a dent in automobile theft by finding ways to ban devices commonly used to steal vehicles and eyeing tougher criminal penalties for perpetrators.

The proposals were among the more concrete ideas that emerged Thursday from a summit aimed at confronting the national scourge of auto theft.

The governments, municipalities, law enforcement agencies and private-sector partners that took part agreed fighting the problem is complex — with several potential remedies — and requires a whole-of-society effort.

They also committed to finalizing a plan, to be released in coming weeks, to tackle a phenomenon that affects thousands of Canadian households annually.

“The rise over the last years has been alarming,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told the gathering as it got underway.

He described how Canadian vehicles are turning up in places like Ghana and Nigeria, with one family having their

SUV stolen on three separate occasions.

“Organized crime is becoming more brazen, and the overseas market for the stolen cars is expanding.”

Trudeau blamed the previous Conservative government for slashing spending on border security, making it harder to prevent stolen vehicles from leaving the country.

And he took a pointed jab at Conservative rival Pierre Poilievre, who has been flooding the airwaves and social media with aggressive counterprogramming aimed at neutralizing the effect of the gathering Thursday.

“A catchy slogan won’t stop auto theft. A two-minute YouTube video won’t stop organized crime,” Trudeau said.

“Cracking down on auto theft means bringing law enforcement, border services, port authorities, carmakers and insurance companies together.”

Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne told the group the government would move to ban the import, sale and use of preferred tools, such as the Flipper Zero, for copying the wireless signals that allow remote keyless entry.

“I think the overall message today is that, to the criminals out there, we’re going to disrupt your activities with everything we have,” Champagne told a news conference.

The federal government says an estimated 90,000 cars are stolen each year in Canada, resulting in about $1 billion in costs to Canadian insurance policyholders and taxpayers.

It says auto theft increasingly involves organized crime groups, and the proceeds of these crimes are used to fund other illegal activities. Most stolen autos shipped abroad are destined for Africa and the Middle East.

On Wednesday, the government earmarked $28 million to help stop the export of stolen vehicles. It also recently devoted $121 million to help prevent gun and gang violence in Ontario, including organized crime and auto theft.

The majority of vehicle thefts are in Ontario and Quebec, with autos exported through the port of Montreal, said Terri O’Brien, president of Equite Association, a national nonprofit organization that supports Canadian insurers.

The latest funding and resources “will go a long way” toward investigations, analysis and inspections, O’Brien said.

Federal officials say Canada has strong laws in place to address auto theft at various stages of the crime, including possession and trafficking of stolen property, and tampering with Vehicle Identification Numbers.

The Criminal Code also includes comprehensive measures to target organized crime, including specific offences and enhanced sentencing for violent acts such as assault with a weapon, the government says.

Even so, Justice Minister Arif Virani acknowledged Thursday a need to review criminal laws to find improvements that would be targeted, efficient and intelligent — and not cause more problems than they solve — with a focus on links to organized crime and those running auto theft operations.