Montreal police say they've busted up an alleged car theft ring believed to be working in the West Island.
Police arrested five men last week: Marc-Olivier Delisle, 25, Mickael Brilo-Martin, 20, Christian Gaumont, 34, Esteban Cantos-Lepage, 25, and Jeremy Dumontier, 19. They were charged with theft, resale of stolen goods and conspiracy.
Police say the investigation began in November 2016 after being tipped off by residents following a new wave of car thefts which had been plaguing the area for the past few years.
Police say they believe the thefts happened mostly in parking lots of hotels near Trudeau Airport so the suspects could make a quick getaway on the highway.
Last week, police seized three licence plates and documents of stolen cars, equipment to make keys, a slim jim tool used to break into vehicles, cellphones, Canadian and American cash, and a small amount of marijuana.
Police say they've met with officials from hotels along the Côte-de-Liesse service road to talk crime prevention.
Some tips police are recommending:
• park your car in a well-lit area
• lock your doors and close your windows even if you're away from the car for a couple of minutes
• don't leave documents in your car that have your personal information on them
• engrave some kind of distinguished marking on your windows and main parts of the body of the car