Another day, another attempted theft of a Ram pickup: On Tuesday morning, police in Sterling Heights, Mich., arrested nine suspects who, according to the arresting officers, were trying to steal some stacked trucks. Ram 1500 pickup trucks are built at the Highlands Assembly Plant at Sterling Docks.
The robbery was thwarted when one of the suspects crashed into a police car and another crashed into an exit gate as they tried to flee to safety on 17 Mile Road in Stirling Heights, police said up. No injuries were reported.
Sterling Heights Police Lieutenant Mario Bastianelli told the Detroit Free Press that detectives are investigating whether the group may have been involved in other similar vehicle thefts.
Stellantis, which owns the Ram Trucks brand, along with Jeep, Chrysler and Dodge, said security at the shipyard is managed by a third party.
A few years ago, thieves broke into a Fiat Chrysler warehouse in Warren, Mich., stole “10 or 11” 2018 Ram trucks and smashed down the gate. The “convoy” fled, police said. They say thieves came to the factory in another Ram — a pickup truck stolen from Warren’s home in 2003.
About a year ago, we reported on several such robberies in and around the Detroit area. Stealing a new car from a warehouse is reportedly easier than it sounds, the story goes: The keys are usually left inside the vehicle, waiting to be issued to the dealer.