Police confirm break-in, theft of vehicles from CarOne dealership in Kingston

After the sudden closure of CarOne, a vehicle dealership with locations in Kingston and Belleville, due to apparent financial problems, the company is facing even more issues.

According to Kingston Police, the dealership, which is located at 775 Gardiners Road just south of the southwest corner of the intersection to Gardiners Road and Taylor Kidd Boulevard, was broken into, and then had two vehicles stolen off the lot, all within 48 hours.

At approximately 10:17 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 10, 2023, Kingston Police attended the dealership lot after reported suspicious activity at the location. According to police, this incident has now been classified as a “commercial break and enter,” with someone or multiple people breaking into the building on the lot.

Then, at approximately 5:49 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 13, 2023, police were dispatched to the area of the dealership, once again for reported suspicious activity. According to Const. Anthony Colangeli, acting Media Relations Officer for Kingston Police, this incident actually involved the theft of two vehicles from the car lot.

“They are both currently under investigation, I can’t say definitively they are related aside from the fact they occurred at the same dealership,” Colangeli said in response to inquiries from Kingstonist.

Later on Sunday, Feb. 12, 2023, one of the large bay windows at the front of the dealership building could be seen boarded up, having been smashed out. The gates to the dealership lot appear to have also been damaged, but put back into place to prevent vehicles from entering – or exiting – the property.

CarOne, which is famously (locally) owned by Trevor Cotton, closed suddenly and without notice to its employees on or about Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023, leaving both customers and employees confused and upset – particularly those customers whose vehicles were currently in possession of the dealership.

Within days, the company had displayed Notice of Bankruptcy papers in the windows of all of the doors of the dealership property in Kingston. The notice, given by Raymond Chabot Inc. – a personal licensed insolvency trustee based out of Ottawa – states that the company (listed solely as “421342 Ontario Limited” is in bankruptcy and insolvency in the Superior Court of Justice, but does not list any relevant paperwork, file, or court numbers. Quoting from Section 203 of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act of Canada, the notice states:

“A person, except the trustee, who, within thirty (30) days after delivery to the trustee of proof of the claim mentioned in Section 81, or who, in case no proof has been delivered, removes or attempts to remove property or any part thereof mentioned in that section out of the charge of or possession of the bankrupt, the trustee of other custodian of the property, expect with the written permission of the trustee, is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000) or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or to both.”

While the notice at CarOne in Kingston does not explain Section 81, that section of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act states with regard to “persons claiming property in possession of [a] bankrupt [company or individual]:

“Where a person claims any property, or interest therein, in the possession of the bankrupt at the time of bankruptcy, he shall file with the trustee of a proof of claim verified by affidavit giving grounds on which the claim is based and sufficient particulars to enable the property to be identified… please govern yourself accordingly.”

The notice goes on to state that Stanley Loiselle is in charge of the estate, and that “any questions relating to the removal of assets” should be addressed to a representative for Raymond Chabot Inc, Mathieu Loiselle. Kingstonist reached out to Loiselle, as well as many former CarOne employees and employees at Cotton’s other vehicle sales venture, Vendde, following the posting of the notice, as well as on Monday, Feb. 13, 2023, after confirmation from Kingston Police of the two incidents that occurred over the weekend.

No response by phone or email has been received from anyone with CarOne, Vendde, or Raymond Chabot Inc. since January 17 as of time of publication.

Both CarOne locations remain listed as registered through the Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council (OMVIC), but are both listed as “inactive,” with the “operating status reason” being listed as “off premises.” The certification through the OMVIC for the Kingston location is set to expire on February 13, 2024, one year from today. The certification for the Belleville location is set to expire until July 25, 2023. Both Vendde locations (Kingston and Belleville) are currently registered through the MOVIC and listed as “active.”

Those looking to collect property in possession of CarOne are instructed to contact Mathieu Loiselle, as per the notice, at 613-317-2423, or via email at [email protected].