Baltimore’s Customs and Border Protections (CBP) made three big recoveries this November: three stolen vehicles headed for Africa.
CBP recovered a 2017 Infiniti QX80, bound for Abidjan, Ivory Coast, a 2017 Chevrolet Silverado High Country, also bound for Abidjan, and a 2015 Honda Accord bound for Lagos, Nigeria. They were reported stolen from Baltimore, Leesburg, Va., and Chicago, respectively.
As Baltimore is one of the country’s busiest import/export ports for vehicles, it isn’t uncommon for CBP officers to examine outbound vehicles and their documentation.
It’s also not uncommon for stolen vehicles to be heading for Africa. According to the CBP, the most common destinations for stolen vehicles are Benin, Ghana and Nigeria.
“Customs and Border Protection officers will continue to work with our federal and local partners to identify and recover stolen vehicles before they can be smuggled out of the United States,” said Dianna Bowman, CBP Area Port Director for the Area Port of Baltimore.
This year is especially busy in stolen vehicle recoveries. The CBP has recovered 59 stolen vehicles during fiscal year 2017. Their combined value was a whopping $1.7 million.
In 2016, the FBI reported that motor thefts have increased 7.4 percent since 2015.
