MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Miami Beach police recovered millions of dollars in exotic luxury cars after they said they disrupted a nationwide theft scheme. One of the vehicles was a Rolls-Royce.
Authorities also arrested three men in connection with what they called a “robust crime scheme.”
Police said the crooks would get into the vehicle dispatch system and reroute the cars.
According to detectives, the suspects engaged in rerouting truck drivers at the point of vehicle pickup, diverting shipments to fraudulent locations.
“We believe that this is a very new crime trend,” Officer Christopher Bess, a Miami Beach police spokesperson, said. “Our investigators have uncovered and solved something that a lot of investigators across the nation are calling to seek assistance with. But we’re not done. There are other pieces to the puzzle.”
Police arrested three suspects, Yuriy Korotovskyy, 41, of Aventura; Arman Gevorgyan, 53, of Van Nuys, California; and Hrant Nazarian, 43, of Aventura, on Jan. 31.
According to their arrest reports, all three are originally from Armenia; Korotovskyy and Gevorgyan are citizens of the former Soviet country. The reports single out suspects of Armenian and Russian origin as being “heavily involved” in the scheme in South Florida.
The suspects have been charged with multiple offenses including grand theft, dealing in stolen property and conspiracy to commit organized fraud.
Police expect more arrests to come.
“We will seek justice with other key players in this investigation,” Bess said.