Motor vehicle thefts in Michigan are up 48.4% over the past five years. Meanwhile, most other crime rates in Detroit are falling. So what gives? Authorities say entrepreneurial car thieves may be tapping foreign markets.

Here is how the operation allegedly works. Organized criminal groups steal new vehicles awaiting shipment from manufacturer lots. They also target desirable models parked on city streets. Fox News interviewed retired detective Kyle McPhee, who said these car theft gangs often use juveniles because they face lighter penalties if caught.

“They’ll pay juveniles very little to go out and bring these vehicles back to wherever they’re going to cool them off.”

According to McPhee, the groups rent commercial lots to stage and process stolen vehicles. They then pack them into shipping containers. “Detroit happens to be a port city. You can put something in a shipping container, and it can be at a port in no time.”

McPhee explained how smugglers disguise the shipments. “They’ll remove any tracking devices and they might cut the vehicle up so they can put it in a shipping container and call it ‘auto parts.’ Then when it gets to its destination, they might reassemble it.” He said criminals constantly change tactics. “They’ll say ‘household goods,’ and there might be five cars in there and two mattresses.”

How stolen vehicles slip through ports

The result is what McPhee described as a “tough duty” for customs officials. “You have to also be careful of what’s coming into the country, and now we have to look at what’s going out.” He noted that agents rely on technology but face overwhelming volume. “They have backscatter machines and X-rays that look into the shipping containers, but you’re talking about a million shipping containers at some of these ports. That’s tough.”

Why go to such lengths to hide a stolen vehicle? The payoff can be substantial in foreign markets. “There’s money to be made….Someone’s getting paid.” McPhee said following the money remains one of the most effective tools for disrupting these networks.

Michigan fights back

The problem has grown serious enough that Michigan officials created the Auto Fraud Task Force. McPhee said these cases often stretch far beyond local borders. “If you have a local organized gang, they can be connected internationally to another group very easily. We have the internet. It’s not hard.”

Dearborn Police Cpl. Daniel said many vehicles end up overseas. “A lot of the cars were shipped to the Middle East.” He specifically cited Persian Gulf countries such as Iraq and Dubai.

Recently, authorities arrested eight men in the Detroit metropolitan area. Investigators say the group operated across four staging lots. The suspects face charges of conspiracy to transport stolen vehicles.

ICE Homeland Security Investigations Detroit Acting Special Agent in Charge Matthew Stentz said, “Our efforts have led to the recovery of over 350 stolen vehicles, and behind every one of those stolen cars is a victim.”