You don’t think of Iraq as a hot bed for stolen vehicles coming from the United States, do you?

Southern California generally, and San Diego, specifically is a hot bed for auto thefts. Most of the stolen vehicles here, however, wind up in Mexico.

Now comes this amazing news - four San Diego-area suspects in a car-theft ring that shipped luxury vehicles to Iraq were in custody!

In addition to the local arrests, nine people were arrested in the Detroit area this week and another suspect was at large, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The agency's nearly two-year-old investigation was dubbed "Operation Hot Wheels."

Sabah Hermiz, 57, of Sterling Heights, Mich., and El Cajon residents Sala Hanna, 57, Samir Daly, 48, and Ramzi Yousef, 58, were arrested in the San Diego area this week.

Hermiz, Hanna and Daly were each arrested on suspicion of transporting stolen property.

According to an indictment unsealed Wednesday in Detroit, the ring rented vehicles from national chains in Michigan and Ohio, drove them into Canada, then filed police reports that claimed the vehicles were carjacked or stolen in the Detroit area.

Five of vehicles allegedly carjacked or stolen were found by the Canada Border Services Agency in shipping containers headed to Iraq, agents said.

Wife No Help?

It should come as little surprise that the wife of one of the El Cajon residents who was arrested claimed, "I am shocked.” "I can't tell you anything."

Evidently the news that her husband was accused in an international car theft scheme came as a surprise.

That woman's son said he was woken up Wednesday morning when eight federal agents stormed an El Cajon apartment complex and arrested his father, Ramzi Yousef. When he saw a list of others who had been arrested, he pointed out four more family members, including his uncle, who is accused of being the ring leader.

That man, Adnan Hana of Sterling Heights, Mich., owned Discount Auto Sales in Detroit. It seems Hana and 13 others used the business to sell stolen high-end rental cars from the United States.

It seems the world holds no boundaries anymore when it comes to theft. Is Armageddon near?