Security and access cards, office key stolen in most recent theft of justice minister's vehicle

A number of government assets — including government employee security and entry passes and an office key — were stolen and were not recovered when the justice minister's government-issued vehicle was stolen in November 2023.

A spokesperson for Justice Minister Arif Virani didn't say what key was taken or whether the lock has been subsequently changed.

"All passes were deactivated as soon as the theft was reported," the spokesperson said in a statement sent to CBC News on Wednesday.

It's not clear how much time passed before the theft was reported. The 2021 Toyota Highlander was reported stolen and recovered within the same month.

Some government bags that were in the vehicle were also taken; a department spokesperson said the bags were empty. A book of taxi chits was also stolen and not recovered.

Virani's 2021 Toyota Highlander was reported stolen on November 11, 2023 — the third time the justice minister's vehicle was stolen in as many years.

The same vehicle was stolen and recovered last February when David Lametti was justice minister. Another vehicle used by Lametti — a 2019 Toyota Highlander — was stolen in February 2021.

"This is an issue that is touching us all," Virani said in an interview with CBC chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton that aired Sunday.

"It's touching communities right around the country and that includes Department of Justice vehicles."

Other government-owned vehicles assigned to federal officials have been stolen in recent years.

A 2022 Toyota Highlander assigned to Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan was taken last February when he was still the minister of international development. It was later recovered.

Canada Revenue Agency Commissioner Bob Hamilton's 2019 Highlander was stolen in 2022. It still hasn't been found.

Government seeks to crack down on auto theft

Last week, the federal government held a national summit to tackle the problem of auto theft. Federal officials met with industry leaders, car manufacturers, police chiefs and provincial and municipal politicians.

Virani told Rosemary Barton Live that solving the problem of rising car thefts is a priority for the government and it's considering harsher penalties.

"One of the principal aspects of the Criminal Code is acting as a deterrent for criminal behaviour. We need to be understanding that and how we can improve the tools in the Code to emphasize that deterrent effect," he said. "I'm taking a deep dive into that legislation."

WATCH: Govermment exploring options to curb car thefts, justice minister says 

Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne has announced the government will move to ban imports of high-tech devices known as "flippers" that have become the preferred tools of car thieves.

The federal government last week also announced an additional $28 million to help curb exports of stolen vehicles, saying the additional funds will give CBSA more capacity to search shipping containers for stolen vehicles.

The federal government says an estimated 90,000 cars are stolen annually in Canada, resulting in about $1 billion in costs to Canadian insurance policy-holders and taxpayers.