Between mid-December and the end of March, police inspected about 400 shipping containers at the Port of Montreal and found nearly 600 stolen vehicles, most of them from the Toronto area.
The operation showed how Canada's second-largest port has become a key transport hub for stolen vehicle exports.
Police say that's because of the port's strategic location and large container volume.
Experts say jurisdictional limitations, a lack of personnel, and organized crime are standing in the way of stopping the scourge of auto theft.
The Port of Montreal spokeswoman Renee Larouche says it works closely with police and border services, but port officials can open containers only to save someone's life or prevent environmental damage.
So far this year, the Canada Border Services Agency has seized 300 stolen vehicles from Toronto-area rail yards, and in 2023 it recovered 12-hundred stolen vehicles at the Montreal port.