Durham Regional Police have issued an arrest warrant for a 48-year-old Romanian man accused of using fake documents to buy a $50,000 BMW from a Pickering car dealership before the SUV was shipped out of Canada. Marian Donoiu allegedly walked into the dealership on December 18, 2025, and drove away with a 2022 BMW X5 using fraudulent paperwork, police say.
The vehicle was exported out of the country before investigators even knew about the crime. Donoiu was then removed from Canada on February 8, 2026, before an arrest warrant could be served. He now faces four charges: Fraud Over $5000, Make False Statement to Procure Personal Property, Possession of Property Obtained by Crime for the Purpose of Trafficking, and Dispose of Property to Avoid Creditors.
The case is part of a larger crackdown called Project Jetsetter, which targets criminal tourism. Police describe this as an emerging threat where people enter Canada legally on tourist visas with the specific intent to commit crimes before fleeing or overstaying their visas. Since 2019, the project has tracked more than 200 incidents in Durham Region alone, leading to 46 arrests and 1,442 charges, with $2.61 million in confirmed financial losses.
Det. Brad Chapman of the Durham Regional Police Financial Crimes Unit says most suspects in these investigations are from Romania, with a smaller number from India. A second Romanian man, 36-year-old Alin Gabriel Nicolae, is also wanted for a nearly identical scam. He allegedly used fraudulent documents to buy a 2021 BMW X5 worth $55,000 from another Pickering dealership on December 30, 2025, and that vehicle was also exported before police could act. Nicolae was removed from Canada on May 9, 2026.
Police are working with the RCMP to track offenders across the country and disrupt these networks. The Canada Border Services Agency has been involved in removing suspects from Canada. Investigators believe the dealership frauds are tied to an organized criminal group. Anyone who may have experienced similar fraud at a car dealership is asked to contact D/Cst. Taylor of the Financial Crimes Unit at 1-888-579-1520 ext. 5283.
