A ServiceOntario employee has been charged with breach of trust after an investigation into the resale of stolen, re-vinned cars, in at least the fourth probe in recent years to implicate service centre employees in such alleged schemes.
The Ontario Provincial Police announced Thursday that they had disrupted a “fraud network” by charging four people, including a ServiceOntario employee from Vaughan.
OPP Acting Detective Superintendent Andy Bradford of the force’s organized crime enforcement bureau said in an interview Friday that the investigation, dubbed Project Tailwind, began in March after police received information about the fraudulent registration of stolen vehicles through the province’s Ministry of Transportation database.
The vehicles had been re-vinned, which refers to the illegal process of altering or replacing its unique Vehicle Information Number to disguise its identity, making it appear legitimate and therefore easier to sell. Sometimes this is done using a new made-up number, and sometimes it involves using a VIN number from another vehicle that has been demolished or exported out of the country.
Acting Detective Superintendent Bradford said investigators in Project Tailwind worked with the Ontario Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement, which has oversight over ServiceOntario, as well as the Ministry of Transportation, which has oversight over registration of vehicles in the province.
Search warrants were executed at homes in Brampton, Kitchener and Maple, Ont. as well as on a vehicle. Six stolen vehicles were recovered and four people – including the ServiceOntario employee – were charged.
This is at least the eighth ServiceOntario employee to face breach of trust charges in the last five years, according to police and court records.
Four employees were charged under the OPP’s Project Myra in 2022.
One of them, Tonisha Baird, was convicted of breach of trust and conspiracy charges last year for helping a body shop owner re-VIN and register stolen vehicles. In his March, 2025, ruling, Superior Court Justice Ranjan Agarwal noted that Ms. Baird – who was arrested while driving a re-vinned stolen 2021 Audi Q3 SUV – also pleaded guilty to a second count of breach of trust in connection to a separate case. Through her lawyer Ayeman Kenawy, Ms. Baird declined to comment.
Court records were not immediately available for the other three ServiceOntario employees charged under Project Myra, though the OPP confirmed at least one had their charges withdrawn.
Three other ServiceOntario employees were charged with breach of trust by Toronto Police as part of two connected auto-theft investigations, Project Safari and Project Poacher, in 2023 and 2024. All three had their charges withdrawn, according to court records.
The OPP deferred questions about ServiceOntario to the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement.
In an e-mail Thursday, Giulia Paikin, press secretary for Ontario Minister Stephen Crawford, said the government has increased the frequency of audits on ServiceOntario transactions in order to catch irregularities earlier. They have also enhanced training for ServiceOntario staff to ensure they are better equipped to spot potential fraud.
“Additionally, all ServiceOntario staff undergo security checks,” she said. “Anyone suspected to be using their position to commit fraud has their authorization removed and is reported to the police immediately.”
The MTO website states that roughly 3,000 agencies and companies can access its driver and vehicle information database, “including auto insurance providers, municipal and private parking providers, road tolling organizations, and others.”
The MTO’s media office did not respond to e-mails Friday.
Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner Patricia Kosseim said in an e-mail Friday that her office was made aware of the investigation earlier this week, and they are determining how to proceed.
OPP Acting Detective Superintendent Bradford said organized crime groups have a significant stake in auto theft, because it is seen as a low-risk, high-profit enterprise.
“It’s a quick way to make significant profits, and then they can be reinvested through other criminal activities.”
Auto theft rates peaked in Canada in 2022-2023, when more than 70,000 vehicles were stolen across the country. But it remains a significant priority for law enforcement, Acting Detective Superintendent Bradford said.
Roughly 47,000 vehicles were stolen last year, according to Équité Association, a not-for-profit organization that assists in insurance fraud and crime investigations.
Bryan Gast, Équité’s national vice-president of intelligence and investigations, said police forces and governments alike have cracked down on auto thieves in recent years. But as investigative tools and efforts become more sophisticated, having an insider has only become more valuable to organized crime groups.
“You can make all the changes you want, but if you have somebody on the inside, that’s obviously extremely problematic, and that’s what’s significant about these cases,” he said.