Luxury vehicles were stolen right off the car dealership lot. Who needs a test drive when you can just take it for a permanent spin?
Three Charlotte men are facing federal charges for conspiring to steal luxury vehicles in Charlotte, NC and across state lines. The suspects are Aquanzae Switzer, 24, Da’Quante Banks, 24, and Trajan Mack, 26. They were arrested in July 2025.
Dozens of luxury and high end vehicles worth well over $5 million were stolen in the scheme. Between 2022 and April 2024, the defendants are accused of engaging in a conspiracy to steal dozens of high end motor vehicles worth millions of dollars from individuals, car dealerships, and other businesses located in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, and Tennessee.
To maximize their profits, the targeted luxury models included BMW, Land Rover, and Mercedez-Benz, as well trucks, SUV, and high end horsepower models like Dodge Chargers.
The defendants allegedly stole multiple vehicles at once, generally at night, using key fob programmers, and conspired with other individuals who served as drivers of the stolen vehicles.
The indictment alleges that the defendants stole 12 vehicles in one night from a car dealership located in Lillington, North Carolina.
To avoid detection the suspects used temporary and fictitious vehicle tags on the stolen vehicles, removed the GPS navigation and tracking systems from the vehicles, and changed the appearance of the stolen vehicles soon after the thefts.
According to allegations in the indictment, the suspects sold the stolen vehicles at prices significantly below their retail value and kept some of the vehicles for personal use and to further facilitate the scheme.
Aquanzae, Da’Quante, and Trajan were arrested and charged with conspiracy to transport, possess, and sell stolen vehicles in interstate commerce, possession of a stolen vehicle, and interstate transportation of a stolen vehicle.
