Thanks To Supply Chain Issues Ford And Other Makers Had Huge Theft Problems

The other day Torque News offered you the audio version of the story of stolen Ford (and other) trucks and how a theft ring made off with nearly $1 million in trucks. The theft of untitled trucks could have left people holding the bag for nearly $70,000 per copy.

One of the washouts of the supply chain problems caused by the pandemic a couple of years ago was the fact that automakers like Ford, to meet the orders that were pouring in for their pickups, were making trucks and then parking them in large storage lots as the vehicles awaited the semiconductors needed to complete them.

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The Case of the Disappearing Trucks

More than once, it was reported that some of the pickups awaiting parts had disappeared from the storage lots. And now it turns out, according to a story on Motorious.com, that there needed to be more documentation as to where the vehicles were stored.

Because things were so loose at the storage lots, people needed to find out where the vehicles were, as there were no records. This allowed two things to happen. The first was that vehicles could disappear from storage lots, and no one knew they were gone. And the second is that since the vehicles were brand new and untitled, many nefarious types could attempt to put them on the road and collect money.

It led to a scheme detailed in Motorious.com – from the Detroit Free Press – that likely has more than a few Ford “owners” muttering. Because the vehicle locations were not followed closely, according to news stories – this story appeared on multiple sites – thieves could get the trucks out of storage and drive them off (one assumes with phony dealer or manufacturer plates attached). This is only the start of the scheme.

The thieves then transported the trucks several states away from the site of the theft, where the heart of the plan took shape. In the new states, the purloined trucks were retitled, using titles stolen nearly a decade ago from Georgia. The retitled vehicles were sold through dealerships and auctions and left them holding the bag. According to the Detroit Free Press, each stolen truck had a retail value of $69,995.

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Thefts Occurred Late Last Year

Police are still investigating the thefts, which reportedly occurred between October and December 2022. Investigators are still scratching their heads, trying to figure out how the trucks disappeared. The automakers from which the trucks – and other vehicles – were stolen were taken from lots where there was no video surveillance. There were no theft reports filed, in some cases, for months after the loss occurred.

The vehicles – Ford and Stellantis both lost vehicles in this scheme – were driven west from the Detroit metro area where they had been stored. They turned up in Arizona. The distance was verified by the number of miles on the vehicle odometers. There were other telltales as well, including gasoline and other receipts.

One of the ways that dealers and title insurance companies check out a vehicle is through the national crime database – the NCIC. If the vehicles had been titled legitimately, they would have appeared in the database and could have been tracked. Because the trucks had never been titled, they could not be traced. This left customers -- dealers, auto auctions, and retail customers – holding the bag for nearly $1 million.

So far, the police investigation has resulted in the recovery of 13 Ford F-150 pickup trucks. There were vehicles damaged in the thefts. And speaking of thefts, some other pilferage such as tires – and one supposes wheels – were stripped off the trucks.

Not the First Time for Thefts

This isn’t the first time there has been a significant theft from vehicle storage lots, as Stellantis reported the theft of Ram trucks. Chevy also has reported the theft of Camaros from its storage areas.

Ford Motor Photo

Marc Stern has been an automotive writer since 1971 when an otherwise normal news editor said, “You're our new car editor," and dumped about 27 pounds of auto stuff on my desk. I was in heaven as I have been a gearhead from my early days. As a teen, I spent many misspent hours hanging out at gas stations (a big thing in my youth) and working on cars. From there on, it was a straight line to my first column for the paper "You Auto Know," an enterprise I handled faithfully for 32 years. Only a few people know that I also handled computer documentation for most of my earnings while writing YAN. My best writing, though, was always in cars. My work has appeared in Popular Mechanics, Mechanix Illustrated, AutoWeek, SuperStock, Trailer Life, Old Cars Weekly, Special Interest Autos, etc. You can follow me on: Twitter or .mstern001">