Rig thefts caught on the Web

TORONTO — Having a bad day? This’ll make you feel better. Or, rather, worse.

Go to www.truckandtrailer.ca and scroll down to "stolen equipment."

You’ll find a regularly updated list of all the trucks and trailers that are swiped or found in this country, and the list will make you gasp with amazement.

For example, you’ll see that in the last week of June, somebody lost a burgundy Volvo attached to 70K lbs of sirloin.

The same week, a load of about 27 skids of computer processors was driven away from a Brampton yard — under the watchful eye of a security camera. That load was worth about $190,000.

The list of crimes continues.

But also, the link also lets you know what to do if you come across any stolen trucks or trailers. Here’s the thinking behind it.

Truckandtrailer.ca is produced by the same people who produce todaystrucking.com as well as Today’s Trucking magazine, highwaySTAR and Truck And Trailer.

The website is Canada’s best online place to market and swap and learn about the heavy-duty truck market.

The "Stolen Equipment" list is a community service presented jointly by the folks at truckandtrailer.ca and the Peel Regional Police‘s Michael Plante, one of Canada’s only police-badge-carrying trucking-theft expert.

According to Plante, publicizing the thefts should help fight the problem.

"We are," he says, "hoping this will increase the security within the industry in attempts to prevent the thefts.

"I need as much assistance as possible locating and identifying property once it’s stolen. I am trying to encourage the industry to share other thefts as well. This will help identify the scope of the problem and hopefully inspire people to do something about it."