Victims out more than $140K after buying stolen commercial trailers: police

One person has been charged after more than $900,000 in stolen commercial trailers were listed for sale since November 2022.

The Edmonton Police Service says it received 21 reports of such trailers listed for sale between November 2022 and last month.

The listings included Super B, hopper, hi-boy and flat deck trailers, most of which were listed significantly below market value.

In each case, the trailer was listed on an online marketplace, such as Kijiji or Facebook Marketplace, and the buyer was instructed to come to a lot to pick up the trailer.

To date, EPS says 13 of 21 trailers have been recovered.

Buyers are out more than $141,000.

In October police identified a suspect, and on Jan. 30 a 31-year-old Spruce Grove man and his female partner were arrested.

The man has since been charged with 23 criminal charges, and one Traffic Safety Act offence, including three counts of fraud over $5,000, three counts of theft over $5,000, five counts of uttering a forged document, four counts of attempted fraud over $5,000, and two counts of breach of release.

His partner was later released without charges.

Police believe the man may have sold additional stolen trailers.

"At this time, we believe there may be additional stolen trailers that were sold to unsuspecting buyers," Const. Cassandra Grant with EPS said in a Wednesday news release. "As a result, we are releasing information related to [the] sales, in hopes that anyone who has been defrauded and/or has had a similar type of trailer stolen comes forward to police."

Police say the trailers were usually listed in Edmonton or Calgary, and most of the sales took place in Edmonton and were picked up within city limits.

The seller reportedly used several aliases, including Ray Ford, Victoor Rapall, Ben L'Smith, and often communicated with victims via text message.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call EPS at 780-423-4567 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

Police are also sharing the following tips for buying a trailer via an online marketplace:

• Ask the seller why they are selling the trailer.
• Obtain a bill of sale and verify the seller's identity through photo ID. Inform the seller that you want this before meeting, this will deter those selling illegitimate property from selling the property.
• Check the trailer’s serial number on the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) website to determine if it is stolen.
• Take screenshots of the advertisements, the advertisement ID number, the seller's contact information, and all communications.
• When meeting to pick up the trailer, suggest meeting during the day at a public location, ideally with video surveillance, such as one of the EPS Buy and Sell Exchange Zones.
• If you locate property being sold that you believe to be stolen, call police at 780-423-4567.
• If the price appears too good to be true, it usually is.