A Ford Employee Spent Years Stealing Spare Parts From Facilities

A Ford worker and three others have been arrested for their alleged involvement in a multi-year theft scheme that cost the company millions of dollars. Police in Dearborn, Michigan, have accused the employee of stealing parts and equipment from various Ford plants and reselling them online and to auto repair shops.

According to police, the thefts have been occurring for more than two years, with parts being taken directly off the assembly lines. Police earlier this week raided two Detroit businesses and two homes after a months-long investigation involving Ford’s global security team. The Dearborn police chief told Fox 2 Detroit that when officers raided one of the Detroit businesses, brand-new auto parts were packed “from floor to ceiling.”

The employee allegedly stole hoods, headlights, bumpers, sills, and more from three Ford plants: Flat Rock Assembly Plant, Ford Rouge Complex, and Michigan Assembly Plant. These plants produce the F-150, Ranger, Bronco, and Mustang. Police have not released the identities of the four arrested individuals as they await formal charges. However, they will remain in custody until then.

It is unclear how the employee managed to smuggle such a large amount of parts from the factory. But this is the second major theft from an automobile factory this year. Less than a month ago, police in India uncovered a multi-year operation in which more than 900 engines were stolen from a Kia factory. The thieves there allegedly manipulated factory documents to cover up their wrongdoing.

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