Large-Scale Rental Car Theft Ring Busted in Florida After 80+ Vehicles Stolen, Cops Say
A group of individuals in Florida have been arrested as part of an investigation into a major crime theft ring that's allegedly responsible for stealing at least 80 rental cars over the last few years.
Last week, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement revealed it's been investigating this case since June 2022, and has finally arrested five out of six wanted individuals. These thieves specifically went after rental cars from Avis and Budget across multiple Florida counties, authorities say, but also stole vehicles in Texas, Georgia, Colorado, Kentucky, Louisiana and Ohio using similar methods.
What, exactly, were those methods? According to Florida authorities, the thieves would start by legitimately renting a vehicle they wanted to obtain. Once it was in their possession, they'd duplicate the key, then return the vehicle to the rental company with an Apple AirTag hidden in the car. They'd return to the rental car lot at a later date with the duplicated key and simply drive it away.
Thefts reportedly happened outside rental lots, too. Law enforcement says the thieves would sometimes wait for an unsuspecting victim to rent a targeted car and drive it away, track that vehicle, then steal it when left unattended with the duplicated key they already had. Either way, the thieves would then reportedly proceed to swap the VINs, obtain clean titles and sell the vehicles to cash buyers.
The vehicles being targeted were typically large, expensive SUVs, according to authorities. Sgt. Steve Gaskins with the Florida Highway Patrol said the majority of the cars stolen were Cadillac Escalades, GMC Yukons and Chevrolet Suburbans. Of the 80-plus vehicles involved, law enforcement said it has recovered 12 over the course of its multi-year investigation.
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