The Port of New York/Newark Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) Outbound Enforcement Team has seized 25 vehicles which were in the process of being shipped out of the country after being stolen off streets across the state and region.

The vehicles, which are worth over $1.4 million combined, are usually driven to the Port of Newark-Elizabeth where they can then be loaded onto one of the nearly 1 million shipping containers that come through the port annually.

Port Newark–Elizabeth Marine Terminal is the the largest in the eastern United States and the 2nd-largest in the country.

Stolen vehicles, especially high-end luxury varieties, have been a huge problem in New Jersey in recent years.

In 2021, 14,320 vehicles were reported stolen – a 22% increase over 2020.

And so far in 2022, thefts are nearly 40% higher than at this point last year.

According to the State Police, the vast majority of auto thefts involve vehicles stolen when the key fob is left in the vehicle or the vehicle is left running.

These incidents are commonly referred to as “crimes of opportunity.”

Thieves may commit several vehicle burglaries before finding a vehicle with a key fob to steal.

Criminals use simple techniques—shared among car thieves via social media or by word of mouth—to steal vehicles and disable factory navigation systems.

Lakewood too, has been spared and TLS has reported on many luxury vehicles stolen from area streets in recent years.

Earlier this year, New Jersey officials announced new steps to curb the recent spike in car thefts, by once again allowing police to engage in pursuits of car thieves and by spending $10 million to expand the use of license plate recognition technology.

Earlier this year, Governor Murphy announced he will use $9 million in federal COVID relief funds to expand the ranks of the New Jersey State Police by launching a second class of troopers.