GPS tracker leads Medley cops to warehouse chop shop packed with stolen Infinitis
A Miami-Dade resident was determined to find his stolen blue 2022 Infiniti Q50S. Since it had a GPS tracker inside it, they alerted Medley police, who hunted down its pings Wednesday to a storage facility holding a criminal secret — a fully operational chop shop.
Around 3:30 p.m., Medley police officers were alerted to the stolen Infiniti and the hidden GPS, which showed it at the warehouse storage facility at 7450 NW 74th Ave., Medley Police Chief Louis Ponce said. The tracker had been installed when the resident bought the car from Car Warriors Dealership, which also helped officers find the Infiniti.
When officers sped over, they said they found two warehouse bay doors open, with multiple cars inside in various states of being torn apart. One of the cut-up cars was the blue Infiniti Q50S, police said. Rolando Garcia, 35, was inside the warehouse and began to rapidly lower the bay doors to hide the chop shop from officers when they arrived, according to police, but they’d already seen inside.
Garcia was detained and later arrested on two counts of grand theft auto, one count of owning or aiding in operating a chop shop, and one count of forging or altering a vehicle title, according to his arrest report. As of Thursday evening, he remained in custody at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
Officers said they found two stolen cars in various stages of dismantling, plus eight vehicle engines, airbags, auto parts, accessories and tools used in running a chop shop. There were also five other cars on the property, according to police.
Ponce said all the cars stolen and torn apart were Infinitis.
An initial investigation found that the chop shop was taking in cars, most likely stolen, and putting them together with different parts from non-stolen cars, Ponce said. The new Frankenstein’s monster-esque vehicles would be sold on the black market, he said, adding that the shop would also sell individual auto parts from the stolen cars.
The National Insurance Crime Bureau is helping Medley police with the investigation.
“I want to make it clear the town of Medley remains the standard for law and order, and we will not accept any illegal activities. We will prosecute you to the extent of the law,” Ponce said.
More suspects are being looked into in connection with the chop shop, Ponce said, and more arrests may come.
Authorities are advising residents to lock their car doors and park their vehicles in well-lit areas, garages or indoors to lower the chances of them being stolen. For those who want to be extra cautious, Ponce suggested installing GPS trackers like the one that aided them in this investigation.
This story was originally published February 26, 2026 at 6:21 PM.
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