Twenty-two people were arrested last week in the Albuquerque area and throughout New Mexico during the takedown of a major international auto theft and drug trafficking ring with ties to the Sinaloa drug cartel. The ring is believed to have stolen hundreds of luxury cars – including Hummers – from car lots in Arizona, Utah, Oklahoma and New Mexico.
The investigation began when ADPS developed information about an organized scheme to steal luxury vehicles off car lots in Albuquerque.
The vehicles were allegedly illegally shipped to Mexico in exchange for drugs that were then trafficked throughout New Mexico.
Those arrested face charges for their alleged roles in a large scale car theft scheme that shipped stolen luxury vehicles from New Mexico to Mexico in exchange for methamphetamine and heroin.
These arrests are the result of an extensive 10-month investigation, known as “Operation VIN-a-Palooza,” which was conducted jointly by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Albuquerque Police Department, Arizona Department of Public Safety’s (ADPS) Auto Theft Authority and the National Insurance Crime Bureau.
During Thursday’s takedown, more than 300 law enforcement authorities executed 12 simultaneous state search warrants in New Mexico, resulting in 22 arrests. During the takedown, agents and officers seized seven firearms, including a sawed-off shotgun and a stolen weapon, as well as various amounts of methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine.
During the course of the investigation, authorities have recovered about 34 luxury vehicles with an estimated value of $2 million. The defendants face state charges that include racketeering, stolen vehicles and money laundering. The charges allege that the defendants stole luxury vehicles, provided them with new VIN numbers and then illegally exported them to Mexico.
The investigation continues; federal charges against some of the defendants may be forthcoming.