It’s bad news for car thieves in Canada as Bill S-9 kicked in the end of April and it didn’t take long before the first suspects were captured stealing Bait Cars and charged under this new section of the Criminal Code.
Bill S-9, the ‘auto theft and trafficking in property obtained by crime’ bill, officially came into force on April 29th and it is going to turn up the heat on car thieves. It provides for a separate punishment section for theft of motor vehicles.
Anyone now convicted of stealing a motor vehicle three times or more under this new law will face a mandatory minimum sentence of six months in jail.
The first two people in Canada charged under this new section were arrested after stealing a Bait Car in Kelowna the Sunday after the Bill came into effect, and another suspect was arrested stealing a Bait Car in Oceanside on Vancouver Island on the following Monday evening.
Police say this effectively is ‘Strike One’ for these suspects. Two more strikes and it’s off to jail for at least six months.
Car thieves throughout the country should be put on notice that it is now riskier than ever to steal a motor vehicle.