By Douglas Maha
In a major crackdown on international vehicle trafficking, INTERPOL has led a successful two-week operation that exposed a network funnelling stolen cars from Europe and Canada into West Africa.
The operation, dubbed Safe Wheels, resulted in the identification of approximately 150 stolen vehicles, with over half of them seized on the spot.
The operation, carried out in March 2025, was the result of close cooperation between INTERPOL and law enforcement agencies across 12 West African nations, including Nigeria, Ghana, Benin, Togo, and Côte d’Ivoire, among others.
Together, these countries set up daily checkpoints—averaging 46 per day—and inspected 12,600 vehicles. Of those, 1.19 per cent were confirmed stolen.
What makes this operation particularly notable is the origin of the stolen vehicles. Most were traced back to Canada, while others were reported stolen in France, Germany, and the Netherlands.
The use of INTERPOL’s Stolen Motor Vehicle (SMV) database played a critical role, enabling officers to instantly verify whether a vehicle had been reported stolen anywhere in the world.
Beyond recovery, the operation opened the door to deeper investigations. Eighteen new cases have now been launched, and authorities identified two organised crime groups tied to the vehicle smuggling network.
The findings further underscore the global scope of car theft and trafficking: in 2024 alone, INTERPOL’s SMV database flagged about 270,000 stolen vehicles globally.
INTERPOL emphasised that access to the SMV system—available to all 196 member countries—has become essential in modern law enforcement’s fight against transnational vehicle crime.
