NY judge to decide who owns rare $1.95m Ferrari: Italian man who it was stolen from in 2003 or US collector after the car - 1 of only 349 made - was seized at the Canadian border for 'highly suspect' tar on the ID number
A federal court will determine whether an almost $2million Ferrari belongs to an Italian man or to a man living in Miami after both filed claims that the car belonged to them upon learning the vehicle was seized by Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
On Wednesday, the US Attorney's Office for the Western District of New York announced that it was launching a civil action to determine ownership of the luxury Italian car.
The 1996 Ferrari F50 was created to celebrate the brand's 50th anniversary and is the 'closest thing to a road-going Formula 1 car,' according to Ferrari's website. Only 349 of the cars were made, making it ultra rare. The car was appraised at $1,949,669 and only had 10,000 miles.
The sports car was being transported across the Peace Bridge Port of Entry, Buffalo, New York, on Dec. 14, 2019, when CBP first noted something was off about the vehicle. It was detained by CBP after an investigation and has been in their possession ever since, with authorities soon able to learn that the car had been stolen in 2003.
On Wednesday, the US Attorney's Office for the Western District of New York announced that it was launching a civil action to determine ownership of the 1996 F50
Italian resident Paolo Provenzi and Mohammed Alsaloussi, a man living in Miami, are both named as defendants in the case
'After investigation, my Office determined that it would not be appropriate for us to exercise our authority and forfeit this extremely valuable and previously stolen luxury car,' stated U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy.
'Instead, after an 18-year odyssey, which we know took it across continents and countries, we have decided that the time has come for a court of law to determine the rightful owner of the vehicle.'
Court documents for the civil action state that when CBP officers first encountered the vehicle, it was being transported on a commercial carrier - Blue Line Trucking - to Mohammed Alsalouussi in Miami, Florida, as an 'unaccompanied personal good.'
The shipper was identified as Ferrari of Quebec in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, documents read. The Ferrari had a Canada license plate registered to Ikonick Collection Ltd, a luxury car collection based in Miami that Alsaloussi owns.
The sports car was being transported across the Peace Bridge Port of Entry, Buffalo, New York, on Dec. 14, 2019, when CBP first noted something was off. CBP tapped the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) to conduct an additional investigation into the vehicle. Photos from the investigation
Pages from the investigation show that the Ferrari was being compared to other vehicles
More pages from the investigation
CBP officers found rivets on the vehicle identification number (VIN) plate located on the Ferrari's dashboard were covered in a 'black tar type substance,' with them later determining was inconsistent with other similar vehicles.
CBP received documentation from lawyers representing Italian resident Paolo Provenzi to prove the car had been stolen from a hotel in Italy in 2003
The CBP then tapped the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) to conduct an additional investigation into the vehicle. NICB conducted an inspection of the vehicle and determined that the VIN plate was 'highly suspect and did not appear to be affixed to the factory standard,' according to the court documents.
CBP would confiscate the vehicle and almost a month later on Jan. 13, 2020, NICB received information from Ferrari in Italy that showed that the 'vehicle had been stolen from the country in 2003 and not recovered,' the documents read.
And around March 25, 2020, CBP notified concerned parties of the 'Notice of Seizure' they had done on the Ferrari, sending the notices via mail.
Less than two months later on May 8, CBP received documentation from lawyers representing Italian resident Paolo Provenzi to prove that the car belonged to him.
The court document state that Provenzi showed that he and his father and brother purchased the Ferrari on Feb. 13, 2003, for 260,000 Euros (roughly $310,660). Provenzi was the owner of the Ferrari when it was stolen on March 30, 2003, in Imola, Italy, from a parking garage at the Hotel Donatello.
He also provided documents from his insurance company that showed his loss wasn't covered, according to the court documents.
It is unknown how the car made it from Italy to Canada.
Lawyers representing Mohammed Alsaloussi (left) and car collector Ikonick Collections submitted their petition for the car as well
Lawyers representing Mohammed Alsaloussi and Ikonick Collections submitted their petition on May 11, according to court documents. Alsaloussi claimed that he did not know that the vehicle had been stolen, the filing reads.
With both Provenzi and Alsaloussi claiming ownership of the vehicle, the car will remain in limbo in Buffalo, New York, until a court decides what best action to take.
The U.S. government is also seeking the following: to give notice to all parties thought to have interest in the vehicle; to prevent Provenzi and Alsaloussi from taking against the government in attempts to recover the Ferrari; discharge the government from all liability, except maintaining the vehicle during court proceedings; dismiss the government from the proceedings; and to award the government its cost as the court seems proper and just.
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