Authorities bust luxury car theft ring in Philly

State law enforcement officials busted what they said was an international car theft ring operating in the greater Philadelphia area.

Attorney General Linda Kelly and Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan announced the arrests and filing of criminal charges against 26 people, including 15 from Philadelphia on Tuesday.

"This was a focused and elaborate operation aimed at primarily high-end luxury cars and SUVs, often snatched from car dealership lots or service departments in communities around Philadelphia," Kelly said.

The stolen cars were then quickly loaded into shipping containers for delivery on cargo ships bound for West Africa, authorities said.

Noonan said at least 17 of stolen vehicles were seized via gunpoint robberies, home burglaries and carjackings in and around Newark, N.J.

Another nine vehicles were allegedly stolen from an Avis car rental agency near Philadelphia International Airport, Kelly said, with most of the thefts linked to an employee of the business, Darrin Culler, 21, of Newark, Del.

The investigation, dubbed "Operation Wheels of Fortune," revealed a network of Philly-based residents who allegedly stole 36 vehicles between March and October 2011.

The attorney general said the thieves had a specific game plan to steal the luxury automobiles.

According to Kelly, the thieves targeted dealerships in the Philadelphia suburbs and New Jersey, typically visiting them during the early morning after the service department had opened but before the sales department and other employees arrived.

The idea was to take advantage of situations where limited service department staff were busy with customers and the thieves could search desks and counters for any unsecured keys to new cars or customer vehicles, Kelly said.

Noonan said that in most cases neither the dealers nor customers even knew their keys had been stolen, which enabled the thieves to take the vehicle immediately or return later to drive it off the lot.

The grand jury found that Qadiyr Anderson, 22, of West Philadelphia, and Kyle Beckett, 39, of East Mount Airy, were assisted in the theft of numerous cars by seven co-defendants, all from Philadelphia.

Kelly said once a car was stolen, a middleman or broker was contacted to find potential buyers overseas.

Pennsylvania State police were able to intercept and recover 41 stolen vehicles, valued at more than $1.6 million, including a $24,000 2009 Mercedes C300 to a $120,000 2010 Porsche Panamera.