Luxury cars are increasingly being stolen in St. Gallen in order to bring them to France.Image: Shutterstock
Mar 10, 2026, 3:52 p.mMar 10, 2026, 3:52 p.m
Young men from France are sent to Switzerland to steal luxury cars from car dealerships and bring them across the border to the west. Thieves also often strike in the canton of St. Gallen.
Two men drive a stolen car too fast through the city of Zurich and along the motorway towards the west. The presumed destination of the two Frenchmen: their homeland. However, they don’t get very far. At some point they leave the vehicle on the A1 motorway and try to get away on foot. But their escape, during which a shot was fired by the police, ends at Oberentfelden AG, where the two of them are arrested according to a communiqué from Kapo Zurich.
Scenes like the one in the canton of Aargau at the beginning of February could also take place in eastern Switzerland. For several months now, the whole of Switzerland has been in the sights of car thieves who are targeting luxury cars from car dealerships. “As of the beginning of March, we recorded seven break-ins in garages, in which eight cars were stolen,” said Florian Schneider, media spokesman for the St. Gallen cantonal police, when asked by the Keystone-SDA news agency. Private garages, on the other hand, are less in focus.
A look at recent media releases from the St. Gallen cantonal police reveals a pattern: At the beginning of March, unknown people stole a Porsche GT3 from a garage in Ebnat-Kappel. “According to current information, the perpetrators fled to France by car,” the police said in a communiqué at the time.
In all cases, France was the target
Thieves had already stolen three high-priced cars from a car garage in Goldach in January. These were also brought to France. Regarding a stolen BMW from a garage in the west of the city of St. Gallen in February, the police did not provide any information in the original communiqué about where the stolen car was taken.
When asked, Florian Schneider said: “For all the cars stolen from St. Gallen garages since the beginning of the year, we assume that the vehicles were brought to France or that the aim was to bring them to France.” Not everyone reached the country. Some thieves were stopped and arrested in Switzerland.
According to Schneider, a pattern is also emerging among the alleged perpetrators: “We assume that young people in France are being recruited via social media with the order to go to Switzerland and steal high-priced vehicles from garages there.”
Criminal groups from the banlieues
The Federal Office of Police (Fedpol) also confirmed this analysis upon request. “The criminal groups behind the crimes can be located in the banlieues of the larger cities in France,” wrote Miriam Knecht, media spokeswoman at Fedpol, when asked. The people who are sent to Switzerland to steal cars are mostly young men with “a certain criminal energy” recruited via social media or chat channels. Some are still minors.
According to Florian Schneider from the St. Gallen cantonal police, the “phenomenon” of car thefts from garages is a relatively new one. In 2024, such thefts were still “absolutely isolated cases”. In 2025 there were 16 break-ins in St. Gallen car dealerships, in which 18 cars were stolen. After all, the cantonal police were able to arrest ten people in connection with such acts.
According to Fedpol, the increase in thefts of luxury vehicles from garages since 2025 has been noticeable throughout Switzerland. “As of today, Fedpol is aware of around 240 break-ins or attempted break-ins into garage businesses across Switzerland since the beginning of 2025 that have been attributed to the phenomenon,” wrote the Federal Office of Police. There are new cases almost every day. “The cantonal police and Fedpol are working hard to combat the phenomenon.” The Federal Office of Police does not expect a further increase in cases.
Fedpol is convinced that the fight against theft will have an impact in the medium term. There is currently a noticeable decline in another “phenomenon”, ATM explosions.
Stolen cars as spare parts storage
Since the beginning of 2025, 24 people from France have been stopped or arrested by the Swiss police, Fedpol wrote. International investigations have already led to the first arrests of masterminds from France.
Such an international investigation involving Switzerland from 2023 also provided insights into what might happen to the stolen vehicles. At that time, 13 people were arrested for shipping stolen SUVs to West Africa via various European ports.
But it is only one of many possibilities. According to Fedpol, individual parts are increasingly being removed from stolen cars and then sold as spare parts via online platforms.
Keys are stored in safes
Analogous to Fedpol, Kapo spokesman Florian Schneider is also convinced that the police will be able to successfully counter this phenomenon. “The police are very good at recovering stolen cars, even if they are abroad.” He knows that at least one of the last three vehicles stolen in St. Gallen and taken to France is already back in the custody of the police.
“The international cooperation works very well and we bring the vast majority of vehicles back,” says Schneider. Ultimately, thieves who take cars stolen in Switzerland abroad are not a completely new phenomenon.
According to Schneider, vehicles used to be transported more and more to the east, today to the west or France. “Today we can build on the structures that were established back then in vehicle investigation and vehicle searches,” says Schneider. It is more difficult to get to the people behind it.
In addition to the police’s experience, Schneider says it is important that garage operators separate car keys from the vehicles and keep them secure in safes. He has noticed increased sensitivity among garage owners in this regard. (sda)