BALTIMORE, MD — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers this week recovered 307 stolen vehicles worth an estimated $14.5 million at Mid-Atlantic seaports during fiscal year 2025, a 23% increase from the previous year, spotlighting the continued role of U.S. ports in disrupting international vehicle theft networks.
The Baltimore Field Office, which oversees ports from Trenton, N.J., to the Virginia-North Carolina border, including facilities in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia, accounted for the nation’s second-highest number of stolen vehicle export recoveries, trailing only the New York Field Office.
Nationally, CBP officers recovered 1,251 stolen vehicles destined for export during fiscal year 2025, compared with 1,244 the year before. The increase came despite the National Insurance Crime Bureau reporting a 23% decline in U.S. auto thefts to their lowest level in decades.
“Auto theft victimizes our nation’s citizens, dealerships, and rental companies, and Customs and Border Protection officers remain committed to combating transnational criminal organizations who are profiting on the international trade in stolen vehicles,” Matthew Suarez, CBP’s acting director of field operations in Baltimore, said. “We want to make this perfectly clear, our seaports are not gateways for criminal organizations to export stolen vehicles or other illicit products.”
According to CBP, officers identify stolen vehicles using intelligence analysis, non-intrusive imaging technology, cargo inspections and verification of vehicle identification numbers against law enforcement databases. When a stolen vehicle is intercepted, CBP shares information with investigative agencies and works to return the vehicle to its lawful owner or insurance company.
The Area Port of Norfolk-Newport News ranked second nationally with 163 recovered stolen vehicles valued at approximately $8.8 million. The Area Port of Baltimore ranked third with 122 recoveries worth about $5.2 million.
The Area Port of Philadelphia and the Port of Wilmington, Del., recovered a combined 22 stolen vehicles with an estimated value of approximately $500,000.
West Africa remained the leading destination for intercepted stolen vehicles, accounting for 201 recoveries, or 65% of the total. Ghana led the region with 102 vehicles, followed by Nigeria with 39 and Togo with 27. Southwest Asia emerged as another significant destination, receiving 61 vehicles, including shipments destined for Iraq, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon.
SUVs continued to dominate theft recoveries, representing 224 vehicles, or 73% of the total. Late-model vehicles also remained a primary target, with 258 recovered vehicles—84% of the total—manufactured between 2020 and 2025.
The recovered vehicles represented 101 different models, including passenger vehicles, heavy equipment and motorcycles. The most frequently intercepted models were the Honda CR-V with 44 recoveries, Toyota Highlander with 24, Dodge Durango with 19 and Land Rover Range Rover Sport with 11.
Among the highest-value recoveries were a 2024 Lamborghini Urus valued at $269,885 that was intercepted in Norfolk before it could be exported to the United Arab Emirates; a 2021 Bentley Bentayga Speed valued at $249,175 bound for the United Arab Emirates; a 2024 Cadillac Escalade valued at $242,150 destined for the same country; a 2017 Ferrari 488 Spider valued at $239,100 seized in Baltimore before export to Ghana; and a 2024 Mercedes-Benz S680 valued at $212,547 that was intercepted en route to Turkey.
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