A family embroiled in a weeks-long mystery involving a missing 1967 Ford Mustang has received some closure — sort of.
The vehicle, which was shipped from Calgary to Winnipeg in early October, was finally located in that city on Monday, weeks after being missing in action.
The strange part is that it wasn’t found at the address it was supposed to be shipped to, but rather at an impound lot.
The vehicle’s owner, Doug Little, told Global News he was in shock when he was informed of the finding by police.
“I’m almost in tears I can’t believe it,” Little said.
“It’s been a total rollercoaster of emotions for this car.”
The rollercoaster for Little and his sister, Jane Lindsay, actually started back in September.
Lindsay, who lives in Calgary, made arrangements to ship the vehicle to Little in Winnipeg. The Mustang, which had been in her family for more than five decades, belonged to her father-in-law, who recently passed.
“He wanted to gift it to my brother because it’s my brother’s dream car,” she told Global News.
But Lindsay said that dream turned into a nightmare after she hired Calgary-based Alberta Auto Transport to deliver the vehicle.
“The amount of chasing I’ve had to do — the amount of emails, the amount of phone calls — it’s been non-stop,” she said. “It’s been a cat and mouse game.”
Lindsay said that not only did the company pick up the vehicle more than a week late, it then ghosted her for weeks afterwards.
When she finally reached someone, she said she was told to pay more money to speed up the process and pay for a “non-running” vehicle.
“I totally feel that this was extortion,” she said. “The car was running when they picked it up. I have video proof.”
The family refused to pay the extra $1,000 the company was asking for until they had proof the car was being delivered.
Instead, Lindsay and Little reported the vehicle stolen to both Calgary and Winnipeg police, which called them on Monday to say the vehicle had been found.
Global News contacted Alberta Auto Transport numerous times to find out what happened to delay the delivery. We then called and emailed to find out the circumstances that lead to the vehicle appearing at an impound lot.
All of our emails were blocked and sent back to us. Our numerous phone calls were also unanswered. A new message on the company’s answering machine said it was “closed for the holidays.”
Global News also checked out the company’s rating and accreditation with the Better Business Bureau. It currently has an “F” rating and an alert which advised that the BBB investigated the company back in January 2020. The alert goes on to say: “This investigation was prompted by a number of complaints received, advertising issues, consumer inquiries and customer reviews.”
The BBB said it reached out to the business but did not hear back.
The family told Global News it too has yet to hear back. But, as for right now, the Littles are just happy to have their treasured vehicle back.
The family said the next step would likely involve taking the company to small claims court to recover some of the money lost.
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