82-year-old Jaguar owner Ivan Schnyder was a fresh 36-year-old attorney when his nearly new Bond ride was stolen from outside his New York City home. The James Bond style automobile was recently confiscated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at the Long Beach Seaport, 46 years after being taken, and just before it was slated to ship off to the Netherlands.
When he received the call that his classic Jag had been recovered, Schnyder said he initially thought it was a joke. When he realized it wasn’t, he expressed how happy he was, because he had enjoyed the car so much in the short time he possessed it.
Schnyder recalled his favorite times were between 4 and 6 in the morning, when he would take out the car and just let it go, around 90 mph on the highway. He plans to restore the Bond style Jag and return it to the same metal grey color it originally flashed.
Five vehicles were recovered separately in the last week of August, ranging greatly in vintage. A Corvette was discovered just days before it was set to ship out to Sweden. The ‘vette was stolen 26 years ago in Oregon, according to CBP officials.
A 1976 Mercedes, stolen 12 years ago, was slated for the Netherlands as well.
Another Mercedes discovered had been leased to an individual in 2006, and subsequently that person stopped making payments. The vehicle was reported stolen in 2008. It was set to be shipped to the country of Georgia before being discovered by CBP.
A 2014 Chevy Camaro was recovered as well, while it was waiting to ship out to the Phillipines.
Some of the vehicles were found being shipped with fraudulent documents, meaning some false documents were given in the process to ship the vehicles out of the country. Often the false document involves a certificate of title in smugglers’ attempts to hide the original owner. Typically it takes three days between when paperwork is submitted and a vehicle is allowed to cross the border.
VIN numbers are run on vehicles set to leave the U.S. in an attempt to ensure there are no liens or stolen vehicle reports before allowing them to lawfully ship out or cross the border. Stolen vehicles that are discovered are seized by CBP, then returned to the rightful owner, whether that is an individual or dealership.
CBP Section Chief Officer Javier Larios told Breitbart News that in years past, CBP has been able to recover thousands of vehicles in cooperation with other law enforcement agencies.
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