Police are warning local car dealerships to be aware of theft rings in which members use the ruse of taking a test drive to steal upscale vehicles.

Police say they are probing more cases in which thieves are using fraudulent identification and the current COVJD-19 precautions to secure unescorted test drives to steal a vehicle.

Members of Halton Regional Police say expensive cars are selected and “this time primarily Mercedes products were targeted.”

“When the test drive was escorted by a sales representative,” police said in a release. “A staged collision was orchestrated in order to complete the theft.”

Two men have been charged by police and face a list of auto theft offences.

Azad Sandhu, 18, of Brampton, is charged with three counts of theft of motor vehicle and possession of a counterfeit mark, false identity documents.

Steven Singh, 20, of Mississauga, is charged with eight counts of theft of motor vehicle, eight counts of utter forged documents and more.

A Toronto home was searched and police found a Mercedes stolen from Hamilton, stolen Ontario dealer plates and fraudulent Ontario and Quebec Driver’s Licences.

A third man was charged in connection with those seizures.

Detectives warn that there are a number of measures the dealerships can take to reduce having a vehicle stolen in an alleged test drive.

If a person provides you with a contact phone number, police say to call it before they leave the lot to verify that it is valid.

If an individual requests a test drive, charge a security deposit to their credit card before they leave the lot.

Consider asking for suitable collateral before handing over vehicle keys to a patron and be aware of someone who arrives on foot or is dropped off for a test drive, with no other means of leaving.

The investigation was conducted by Halton Regional Police (HRPS) Oakville Criminal Investigations Bureau in collaboration with the Peel Regional Police and Hamilton Police Service.