Ont. family trying to regain ownership after stolen vehicle sold illegally

An Ontario man is trying to get back ownership of the vehicle that was stolen from him.

Ali Hassan said his SUV was taken from his Kitchener home while he was on vacation with his family.

As he does not speak English, his son shared the story with CTV News.

Hassan said he provided the vehicle identification number in his report to police.

“The vehicle was reported stolen in April of 2024,”Constable Chris Iden, public information officer with the Waterloo Regional Police Service, explained in an email. “It was recovered in Hamilton and was held as seized evidence as part of the investigation.”

Officers then told him that ownership of the SUV belonged to someone else.

Ali Hassan in Kitchener on Aug. 21, 2024. (Colton Wiens/CTV News)

When the family eventually got the vehicle back, Hassan went to ServiceOntario to re-register for ownership.

Hassan said, as proof, he brought along an email from Waterloo Regional Police to show staff at ServiceOntario. The email explained the vehicle was stolen and then sold. The officer also explained that Hassan could re-register as the original owner.

Despite showing that correspondence, ServiceOntario would not make the change.

The SUV is the only vehicle the family owns and Hassan said he can’t go to the pharmacy to get his medications without it.

Hassan's son said the family is also working with their insurance company on damage they believe happened after the vehicle was stolen.

The Ministry of Transportation sent CTV News the following statement: "When law enforcement reports a vehicle as stolen, a flag is created in the province’s driver and vehicle databases preventing any subsequent vehicle transactions from being completed. Customers may present a police document at a ServiceOntario centre indicating that the vehicle has been recovered. Following confirmation from the Canadian Police Information Centre, the system flag is lowered and ServiceOntario may proceed with transactions.”