GARDEN CITY, Mich. (WXYZ) — Eight men from Garden City, Detroit, Dearborn Heights and Harper Woods are facing federal charges after investigators say they ran a car theft and international smuggling ring.
According to a federal indictment, the Department of Justice is accusing the men of conspiring to receive stolen vehicles for one of four commercial lots, dating back to July 2023. According to the indictment, the four commercial lots were located in Detroit – on Greenfield Rd., Fullerton Ave., Tireman Ave. and Nelson St.
See video of cars being unloaded from shipping containers below
Feds claim the men would then pack two or more vehicles in shipping containers and work with a freight forwarder, providing the forwarder false information before shipping them to port cities, via freight or rail.
“Our efforts have led to the recovery of over 350 stolen vehicles and behind every one of those stolen cars is a victim” said ICE HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge Matthew Stentz in a statement. “This case hits even closer to home in a state like Michigan, where auto theft doesn’t just hurt our wallets, but our culture. Our HSI special agents and law enforcement partners will continue to do the work necessary to take down these operations that harm everyday Americans.”
The DOJ tells us the charges stem from an investigation started by Dearborn Police, with ICE, Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and the FBI.
"The smugglers coordinated the precise arrival of stolen cars with the presence of shipping containers in order to avoid stolen cars being exposed to public view for long periods of time," the indictment reads. "Oftentimes, the brokers escorted the car thieves and the stolen vehicles to the lot. Either upon delivery or shortly after delivery, the smugglers would pay the brokers (or the thieves directly) for the stolen vehicles."
"This has been an investigation ... that’s been going on for nearly two years. They seized over 400 vehicles and almost $40 million in assets. It actually started with an officer seeing one stolen vehicle getting loaded into a container and from there it just networked and spidered for two years. Cars were stolen all over SE Michigan and these were high end vehicles, too, for the most part that were stolen from people’s driveways, auto lots, rental vehicles," said Dearborn Police Chief Issa Shahin.
All eight men listed below have been charged with conspiracy to transport stolen vehicles, along with at least one count each of transporting a stolen vehicle:
- Haydar Al Haydari (41-year-old from Garden City)
- Karar Alnakash (43, Detroit)
- Abbas Al Othman (42, Dearborn Heights)
- Mohammed Al Hilo (36, Detroit)
- Moustapha Al Fetlawi (46, Dearborn Heights
- Terrill Davis (33, Detroit)
- David Roshinsky Williams (32, Harper Woods)
- Mohammed Al Abboodi (35, Detroit)
If convicted, all eight men face a maximum of five years in prison for the conspiracy and 10 years for each stolen vehicle.
If you want to report any information, you can email HSIDetroit_StolenAuto_Tipline@hsi.dhs.gov
You can read the indictment in full below.
Indictment Document - Usa vs. Haydar Al Haydari Et Al by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit
