Dozens of family vehicles were stolen from the streets of Brisbane by an international crime syndicate using high-tech tools, according to police.
About 60 Toyota LandCruiser and Prado four-wheel-drives disappeared from homes between October 20 and December 1, last year.
Many were allegedly hidden in shipping containers and sent to the United Arab Emirates for sale.
Two allegedly-stolen Toyota Landcruisers from Brisbane hidden in a shipping container.Credit: Queensland Police
“This was a highly organised, well-disciplined and very sophisticated international syndicate,” Detective Inspector Paul Dalton said on Wednesday.
Seven men from Brazil, Fiji, Japan and Afghanistan were hit with 380 offences. They allegedly flew into Australia on valid visas and rented properties before the crime spree.
Investigators, working with Toyota to thwart the scheme, claim the group used a device to override vehicle computers and gain entry, allowing them to drive off without a key.
The vehicles were hidden behind car parts in the shipping containers. Credit: Queensland Police
They declined to outline how the technology worked, saying doing so could encourage copycat offending.
A LandCruiser was seen being driven into a wrecking yard along Melbourne Street at Rocklea on December 2, and police followed the vehicle to a shipping container where other vehicles were hidden behind car parts.
