We have new information on an alleged car theft ring in Baldwin and Wilkinson counties.
Repo man Tracy Ford from McIntyre is accused of using stolen tow trucks to operate auto recovery business.
Now, Wilkinson County's Sheriff's office says they have seized over 50 more vehicles.
"We didn't realize it was going to be this big," says Sheriff Richard Chatman.
He says this is the largest vehicle theft case he has ever seen.
Tracy Ford is accused of stealing more than 60 vehicles. 51 were found in Wilkinson County and 12 in Baldwin.
Chatman says he believes most of those vehicles were stolen in the Atlanta area.
Ford is the owner of Hooker's Recovery and Ford's Recovery, with locations in both McIntyre and Milledgeville.
He says they began looking into Ford's businesses after a tip that the vehicle his son was driving could be stolen.
"Matter of fact he was on our wrecker call list," notes Chatman.
The vehicles, from pick-up trucks to motorcycles, fill three different impound lots.
"This is just astronomical in terms of the amount of money involved in this," he says.
Chatman guesses the total value is about $2 million.
Finding the original owners has not been an easy process.
"Some VIN numbers are missing some have been ground off," he explains.
When the car does not have a vehicle identification number, Chatman says they look for other parts in the car that may have some kind of identification on it.
If there is nothing to track the car, investigators must check their database to find cars reported stolen that may match the description.
Right now, the Sheriff's office is working with the insurance companies to try to track down the owners.
He says that the repo service, with lots full of cars, was the perfect cover for this massive operation.
"I guess sometimes the best place to hide something is in plain sight."
Chatman says right now Ford is the only suspect.
But the Wilkinson County Sheriff's Office, along with the GBI, still has plenty of work to do, and others could be charged.
The District Attorney's office is still deciding how many more charges Ford will face.
Ford is being held in the Wilkinson County Jail.
