WARMINGTON: As good as carjackers got at their craft, cops have caught up

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The criminal world had gotten so good at carjacking that they felt they were invincible.

Being able to steal anybody’s care from anywhere they wanted and most of the time getting away with it, they thought that easy money would keep flowing because the authorities seemed to have no answer for their modus operandi and modern technology like encrypted cellphones and apps.

For a while, they were right. Not as much anymore. Times are changing.

Police have not only caught up with the technology, but have also gotten pretty good at catching these criminals with old-fashioned detective methods, which includes Peel Regional Police’s famous break and enter, auto and retail (BEAR) unit. Now the courts, albeit slower than people would like, are starting to get better at dealing with this scourge, too.

In this case of the 21 alleged carjacking incidents, 15 vehicles were stopped from getting on a shipping container for the illegal market across the ocean. Their batting average is decreasing. Stopping the thefts is one part of the Peel police Project High Guard story, but intercepting efforts to recruit young people into that world is another aspect to this important case.

There is nothing better than when a carjacker gets jacked himself — or an organized group of them. That’s exactly what Project High Guard has done.

“Investigators with the central robbery bureau have arrested 10 individuals following an extensive investigation into a series of violent carjackings and high-end vehicle thefts across the Greater Toronto Area,” said Peel police in a news release.

Old-fashioned police work vs. modern crime

All 10 of the accused are Canadian citizens. Two were known to police and are charged with breaching court conditions.

Peel police Chief Nish Duraiappah said “investigators successfully worked up the chain, identifying not only those responsible for carrying out these robberies, but also the individuals alleged to have directed and benefited from them.”

Charged are Ekamveer Randhawa, 20, of Caledon; Tayvien Coley, 19, of Halton Hills; Parth Sharma, 21, of Oakville; Gregory Seniv, 37, of Mississauga; and Shan Dhindsa, 21, Aryan Deol, 20, Manavjot Dhaliwal, 24, and Madhumeet Randhawa, 37, all of Brampton. Two 17-year-olds were also charged, but can’t be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Among the 128 charges, which included the recovery of four illegal guns as outlined by the Toronto Sun‘s Gordon Anderson, one count stood out in a troubling way for a 17-year-old hit with a truckload of charges: Three counts of robbery, wearing a disguise and conspiracy to commit robberies, aggravated assault, possession of stolen property and participating in a criminal organization.

But it was this charge that caught people’s eye: “Recruitment of members by a criminal organization.”

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Teens recruiting teens into crime

Police sources said this is huge because what is happening is young criminals are being encouraged by adult associates to go online or into schools and entice fellow teenagers into a life of crime that gets them easy pay, but takes them down a path that is hard to get away from.

“Adults in these organized crime groups use the kids,” said a police source.

They allegedly ask these kids to bring their friends into the lifestyle.

In this case, the charges have not been tested in court. But they will be and Duraiappah indicated the investigation is far from over.

“Dismantling organized criminal networks requires partnerships and precision and Project High Guard demonstrates our unwavering commitment to protecting the public and holding offenders accountable,” he said.

Not just stealing cars but charges of aggravated assault

He also said one of the victims in this case had to go to a hospital for reconstructive facial surgery after a violent effort to fleece his high-end luxury car.

As for the courts taking this more seriously, two of the accused have have so far been denied bail. It’s not perfect, but in recent years everybody seemed to be getting easy bail. A lot of this success goes to Duraiappah and Deputy Chief Nick Milinovich, who have routinely gone to Parliament Hill and Queen’s Park to advocate for bail reform.

As Premier Doug Ford and Prime Minister Mark Carney have acknowledged, the old way was not working. But if they want to see change for the better, they can push to make all people convicted of carjacking and physical violence serve a minimum of seven years in prison. They can change the rules to make sure the public knows which youths are being charged and convicted. Every person who commits a major crime or one in which someone is hurt should be tried as an adult with no breaks in sentencing.

If they are convicted of recruiting other young people into a criminal enterprise, treat them the same as an adult convicted of similar charges.

Throw the book at criminals convicted of these types of crimes by putting their rear ends in a prison cell for many years.

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