Grand Theft Moto: 57 Motorcycles stolen from Canadian distributor

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In a heist of Italian Job -like proportions, 57 new motorcycles were stolen from a KTM Canada warehouse on Sunday, October 17.

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The Canadian distributor for KTM, Husqvarna, and Gas Gas motorcycles is located in Chambly, Quebec, but the thieves knew to target their warehouse in Laval, Quebec, just north of Montreal, where the new motorcycles were being stored before being distributed to dealers.

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Grand Theft Moto: 57 Motorcycles stolen from Canadian distributor Back to video

The stolen motorcycles – which included 2021 and 2022 KTM, Husqvarna, and Gas Gas models – were still in their shipping crates when they disappeared. They were reportedly loaded onto three containers and hauled off the premises by three trucks. The warehouse also stored other items from other companies, but the thieves targeted only the motorcycles.

KTM and Husqvarna specialize primarily in off-road and dual sport motorcycles, while Gas Gas is known for its competition trials motorcycles. All three companies are owned by Austria-based Pierer Mobility.

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The new as-of-yet-unregistered motorcycles will nonetheless be hard to sell on the black market — at least completely assembled — since their serial numbers have been registered as stolen with authorities. The bikes are also protected by electronically locked ECUs, which must be unlocked by a dealer using a computer connected to the factory via internet, otherwise they will shut down after running just a short while. The stolen bikes have an approximate value of $500,000.

This is a big setback for KTM Canada, which, like other motorcycle distributors, was already experiencing a COVID-19-related shortage of new bikes.