NDG woman has licence plates swapped; Montreal police say it’s a common criminal tactic

A Quebec resident says she was shocked to see her car's licence plate swapped without her knowledge, a tactic police say is a common strategy used by criminals.

Notre-Dame-de-Grâce resident Allison Bond was out on a casual walk recently when she noticed something didn’t look right on her car.

Upon closer look, the licence plate was not hers. She said hers was stolen and swapped with another one, and Montreal police warn it’s a tactic that can give criminals a way to hide in plain sight.

Bond filed a police report about the missing plate, but the discovery left her with questions.

Why her car?

Bond says she intentionally chose a simple vehicle — hoping it wouldn’t attract attention, especially from thieves.

“There’s no flash in my car, it just works. So it was a bit of a surprise,” she told CTV News.

Montreal police say cases like this do happen. A spokesperson says investigators are looking into several similar incidents on the island and say “it appears stolen licence plates may be used in connection with criminal activities, particularly vehicle thefts.”

The practice isn’t new. Police say they’ve been seeing it for years.

Former Montreal police investigator Doug Hurley says the strategy is straightforward: the plate acts as a disguise.

“To give a new identity to the vehicle that they’ve just stolen, or is otherwise involved in some type of criminal action ... As a crook, it just minimizes the chances that you’d be stopped and interrogated,” he said.

A switch like this can go unnoticed, he said, since most drivers don’t check their plates very often.

Hurley believes technology like licence plate readers should be coordinated across the board.

“Whether it be government-issued for highways, whether it be police vehicles going by ... as an investigative tool, to help settle crimes,” he said.

As for Bond, she moved quickly to fix the problem, going to the SAAQ to get a new plate. Her new one should arrive in the mail within three weeks.

In the meantime, police have a simple reminder for drivers: take a quick look at your car from time to time and make sure the plate on it is actually yours.