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Tow truck wars: Police allege fraud, arson and murder

Police say rival tow truck companies used violence and intimidation to carve out territory in southern Ontario, including a Christmas Eve killing and a torched legal office. CBC’s John Lancaster reports.
This North York tow truck was one of five that were burned in the GTA on Dec. 23, 2019. (Jeremy Cohn/CBC)

York Regional Police announced an enormous bust taking down alleged organized crime rings in southern Ontario's tow truck industry this week.

Police say that for the last three years, rival companies have used violence and intimidation to carve out turf, alleging they caused and staged collisions, worked with auto repair shops and rental companies to carry out fraud, set fires and even killed in cold blood. Four people are dead, and the investigation is ongoing.

And police say that's just scratching the surface. CBC senior reporter John Lancaster has been covering this story. Today, we sort through the violent wreckage of the "Tow Truck Turf Wars."

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