The Malta Customs Department seized 12 cars which were found in containers at the Malta Freeport, arriving from Canada, taking the total so far to 24.

The number of stolen cars seized now stands at 24, as 3 Lexus RX350, 2 Ford Pick-ups 450, 2 Ford Expedition SUV, 1 Mercedes G63, 1 Honda CRV, 1 Mustang, 1 Range Rover Velar, and 1 Ford 150 were found in several containers en-route to Abu Dhabi, the department said in a statement.

Police in Canada identified an organised crime group, conducted a series of raids and made several arrests following all the documented information provided by Malta, which confirmed that all cars seized were those reported as stolen. During the raids, several other stolen vehicles, key decoders, and shipping information were recovered, in addition to substantial amounts of money. It also transpired that two of the vehicles detained in Malta were stolen by violent car-jacking.

Furthermore, the investigation led the Canadian Border Service Agency to identify an additional number of containers with other stolen vehicles, prior to being shipped out of Canada. With 24 stolen vehicles secured, this morning the Canadian Authorities commended Malta Customs for this impressive operation.

The following is a list of the stolen cars seized from 14 forty-foot containers in Malta:

• 6 Lexus RX350;

• 5 Ford pick-ups F450;

• 3 Ford Expedition SUV;

• 2 Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV;

• 2 Mercedes G63

• 1 Jaguar F-pace;

• 1 Mustang;

• 1 Ford 150;

• 1 Range Rover Velar;

• 1 Jeep Rubicon; and

• 1 Honda CRV.

As with the other cases of stolen vehicles intercepted, the shipping documents did not tally with the contents, the department said.