The one F40 case which springs to mind was where the owner was actually killed and the F40 stolen, I seem to recall he was a Ferrari collector.
That was Swiss Michel Roger Lepeltier of Geneva, Switzerland. He was murdered 10 April 1990 (aged 57) by French gangsters who attempted to steal his F40 #82795 out of his private garage at home in Geneva (Switzerland), but Lepeltier woke up and the French gangsters (coming from the Lyon area) did not succeed and instead killed the man. A very very sad story. That F40 was NOT stolen. Marcel Massini
The world is full of bad stories.... Worst than this italian F40 theft. But guys, in Italian i would say: "non bisogna perdere le speranze" That is: never losing hope. I hope that here, or via email ([email protected]) i can get other information for this car, it would be a very important success for the Owner. The owner who has not forget this amazing car, brought with a lot of work and sacrifices. Best Regards. A. D.
I think I know. In 2013 or 14 I went to osaka to see an F40. Seller seemed sketchy so i wrote to Marcel massini. I remember he said car was reported stolen in Palermo italy in 1996! I tried to contact italian police but they werent interested. i will try to find my original post to find serial number. marcel may have it as well.
No. Stolen 25 November 1996 in Paderno d'Adda (Province of Lecco, Lombardy region), Italy. Not Palermo, Sicily. Monte Carlo license plates N 969, owned by Mr. B. of Parma. Marcel Massini
Ever heard of mafia and organized crime? In the other "stolen F40" thread on fchat I have already posted some information about this. Check it out. Posts 33 and 35 etc: https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/f40-stolen-in-italy-in-1998.612220/page-2 Marcel Massini
Thanks, I guess they were shipped from Algeciras which is known for its issues, especially with regards to drug imports from South America. There are many many places I would put higher up the chain in mafia and organised crimes than Marbella though, hence my question.
Geez, my area! I never heard about this story, perhaps because I was young. If it's possible, would you mind to share more info?
So, what happened to 89009 and the original poster AndreaDG ? And how about the owner of the car, Paolo G. in Milan, now 79 ? Marcel Massini
Dear Marcel, I am here. Mr. P. G. Dies 5 years ago. The family want to search the car, but I think it's too late... Thank you for your support, Best regards.
You don't need to hide it since they all look the same. The VIN is not written on the plate. Just another red F40. You need to register it, and there are many highly skilled forgery specialists and corrupted public employees in this world If you steal a F40 in the 80's and 90's and manage to bring to middle east and sell it to a royal/ruling family member nobody will ever find it. Those families literally own the country and nobody will ever investigate the royal family property, and since they are all red and looking the same it's even more difficult.
Numerous countries also do not recognise the laws of the country where the car was stolen from, so once they are registered and on the road they can hide in plain sight, as they are legal in that new country and can then be resold or exported to similar places around the world. Its also why when a car burns to the ground there are many interested people wanting to buy it as a VIN donor for such cars.
Japan seemed to be the place where many ended up, which is weird as Japan has a very low internal car crime issue itself. Marbella is where many UK crims fled to in the 80s and 90s so it is no surprise this is where the process was managed back then.
See post #5. Ferraris that are already in Japan are not the ones stolen. Japanese dont steal Ferraris. But a few import them to Japan. Ferraris were stolen in (southern) Europe, and then shipped via Marbella and other places to Arab countries and on to Japan. In Japan nobody cares about European chassis numbers and the authorities (in many but not all cases) simply xxxed out the standard serial number and added their own (Japanese system) chassis numbers. I have seen several Ferraris in Japan and out of Japan, that were basically "ruined" by Japanese overstampings. Think 348, 355, TR, 288 GTO, even a Daytona, etc. Marcel Massini
Yes that is what I meant Marcel, that although internally very few cars get stolen in Japan, it was somehow acceptable to own one if it was stolen in another country. Sent from my SM-A520F using Tapatalk
Anybody know the VIN for this one? for sale in Japan. https://www.goo-net-exchange.com/usedcars/FERRARI/F40/0920110601Z4001630001/index.html listed as ZFFGJ34B00008****
Hi guys, I was scrolling on Facebook and a video about a chap who was in the market for an F40 had flown to Japan to buy one appeared, turns out it was stolen from Italy in 1996! Just googled it and he’s just released the video in the last day or so (link below) It turned out to be stolen from Italy in 1996, this could be your family’s car? Just created an account here to post this just in case you haven’t seen this news yet. I do hope you somehow get it back! Or whoever’s car it is has it returned. https://www.facebook.com/257349577681419/posts/3523163297766681/?d=n All the best Tom
Thank You Tom for your report, but this car is#82761, stolen in Paderno d'Adda in 1996, like our F40.