Thieves crash 10 Ram trucks through factory gate in ‘well-planned’ heist

WARREN, Mich. - A fleet of hot Ram trucks has vanished from the factory parking lot. Warren police said late Friday morning it was starting to get needed information from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles to move the investigation forward.

Warren Police Commissioner Bill Dwyer told the Free Press that vehicle identification numbers had finally been provided to law enforcement and progress is under way. Earlier Friday, he expressed frustration at FCA's lack of cooperation and said he didn't even know how many trucks were taken.

Dwyer said he's offering a reward that he says is more than $1,000 for information leading to an arrest and recovery of the 2018 Ram trucks stolen early Thursday from FCA's Warren Truck Assembly Plant.

Highly organized thieves drove to the plant in a 2003 Ram truck they stole from a residence in Warren, offloaded up to a dozen drivers, cut a hole in the plant's fence. They drove off with the new vehicles, crashing them through the gate as a security guard watched.

Incredibly, there are no leads in the case.

"We're pulling from wherever we can in different areas," Dwyer said. "We've had no calls."

FCA spokeswoman Jodi Tinson on Friday referred to the company statement issued Thursday: "FCA US is working with the Warren Police Department regarding the theft of several Ram Trucks ... The company will be assessing security measures at the location and implementing any necessary changes to prevent future incidents."

She said Friday morning she had nothing to add.

Multiple agencies are involved in the investigation. Law enforcement is seeking surveillance video from businesses along Mound Road, where the huge trucks were last seen heading south after 4 a.m. Thursday.

"I just think it's unusual for the number of trucks that were taken," Dwyer said. "We're looking at 10 or 11 in a convoy going out. I assume they had a place they are storing the stolen trucks, probably in a warehouse."

Warren police, now working with the Macomb County auto theft squad, is coordinating with multiple departments throughout the area. The commissioner provided a new 24/7 tip hotline: 586-574-4877.

"We're asking for any information that anyone would have," Dwyer emphasized. "Obviously there are people that are aware of the theft and have information. We're asking those people to provide information confidentially."

He wouldn't say exactly how much the reward is, but, "It has been my experience that when you offer these rewards, people come forward. Money talks."

A security guard called Warren police before dawn Thursday, watching in disbelief as the convoy drove out of the secured area where vehicles just off the assembly line were stored for shipment to car dealers.

"This was well-planned," Dwyer said initially.

While automakers build pilot vehicles to test manufacturing protocols, those vehicles are not kept on a shipping lot. They would be destroyed immediately. The trucks stolen were destined for consumers.

Theft of the new Rams from a secure lot north of Detroit was likely an orchestrated effort meant to fill an order for stolen vehicles, theft experts said.

"We're calling it the mass order business," said Mark Wagenschutz, executive director of HEAT, an independent Michigan agency funded by the insurance companies to help eliminate auto theft. "People think it's a Detroit problem. This is a statewide issue."

Dwyer was unable to say whether the Ram thefts were part of a crime ring or syndicate, noting that the investigation is open and active.

Unknown is whether the target is the vehicle itself or some expensive item inside the vehicle, such as the stereo system or the navigation system. Crime rings take orders on stolen vehicles and also create networks to illegally supply parts.

Ram ranked third among all vehicles sold in 2017, behind Ford F-Series trucks and Chevrolet Silverados. The bestselling F-Series sold 896,764 while Silverado sold 585,864 and Ram sold 500,723.

The new Ram is a popular vehicle with its estimated $30,000 price tag, with 143,216 sold in the U.S. already in 2018. Police did not have video or still images available to provide to the press.