In 1995, someone made off with race car driver Gerhard Berger’s personal Ferrari from outside the Imola track. Then it vanished—like a ghost with a 200 mph top speed. Not something you’d ever expect to see again. Until twenty-eight years later when there were whisperings that the stolen Ferrari F512M was in Asia.

A tip, a Testarossa, and a ticking clock

The red Ferrari F512M was one of only 501 ever built. It was worth £350,000 and could do 196 mph. Berger was in town for the San Marino Grand Prix when the thieves struck.

Then—nothing. For nearly three decades.

Until January 2024, when Ferrari flagged a car being prepped for sale to a U.S. buyer. The vehicle had come through Japan. It landed in the UK under a clean-looking file. But something didn’t add up.

Ferrari alerted the Metropolitan Police. The Organized Vehicle Crime Unit took the case. And just like that, the race was back on.

The global chase for a stolen Ferrari

The Met started dialing numbers. “Our inquiries were painstaking and included contacting authorities from around the world,” said Constable Mike Pilbeam, who led the case. They needed to know where the car had been—and where it was going.

The trail stretched back 28 years. The car had crisscrossed continents. But finally, the unit confirmed it was Berger’s stolen Ferrari. Now, it was about to leave the UK again—this time for good.

The Met had to move fast. “We worked quickly with partners including the National Crime Agency, as well as Ferrari and international car dealerships,” Pilbeam said. That teamwork “was instrumental in understanding the vehicle’s background and stopping it from leaving the country.”

Berger’s Ferrari isn’t just a recovered car—it’s proof that stolen rides don’t stay buried forever. It took 28 years, a global trail, and a well-timed tip from Ferrari. But this time, the good guys crossed the finish line first.