Raleigh police are seeing a new trend where criminals are building "Frankenstein cars" by combining stolen parts from high-end vehicles with the legally purchased frames of lower-end models. (thank you George!)

taking stolen parts from a high value, top of the lone vehicle and putting them on the legally purchased frames of a very inexpensive similar vehicle, the base model, then pass the car off as higher-end model car to sell it for a huge profit.

On July 5, a Raleigh police officer spotted what appeared to be a 2018 Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk valued at $82,600, but discovered after checking the VIN that it was actually a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland that was legally purchased, just for the chassis and paperwork, then a higher-end model is stolen dismantled for the parts, and those are used to disguise the cheap vehicle with paperwork as a very expensive model, to sell for a great profit.

 If police ever discover the it, or during a sales process the fakery, the new owner won’t face charges, but will lose the car and the money they spent on it.

https://www.wral.com/news/local/raleigh-police-frankenstein-cars-stolen-parts-august-2025/