Eight submerged vehicles were recovered and extracted from a Golden Gate Estates canal during a Collier County Sheriff’s Office operation Thursday.
Further investigation revealed all of the vehicles were stolen, said Sgt. Dan McDonald of CCSO’s Financial Crimes Bureau, which investigates auto theft and auto insurance fraud.
Six of the vehicles were reported stolen out of Collier County, one was stolen out of Cape Coral and one was stolen out of Miami, McDonald said.
Members of the CCSO dive team and Auto Theft Unit participated in the vehicle recovery operation at the Crystal Lake Canal, along Interstate 75 east of Everglades Boulevard.
Representatives from the National Insurance Crime Bureau and GEICO, State Farm and Infinity insurance companies were also present during the operation.
Operations like the one Thursday in which multiple vehicles were recovered are possible during the winter months when the water levels in area canals are low and submerged vehicles are recognizable by air. CCSO’s Aviation Unit located all of the vehicles.
