The first of five men accused of being part of a crime ring behind the theft of more than 60 Toyota LandCruisers worth more than $8 million has been denied bail in Brisbane’s arrest court and now faces up to 14 years in prison.
Sher Hussain Mahasely, a 29-year-old Uber driver and business owner, was arrested by Queensland Police Service officers on the afternoon of December 9, 2025.
He appeared before a judge this morning with a request for bail, which was rejected after an approximately 30-minute proceeding.
The QPS alleged Mr Mahasely was part of a five-man crime syndicate responsible for a surge in Toyota thefts in Brisbane, with 74 vehicles – mostly LandCruiser 300 Series and RAV4 SUVs – stolen over a three-week period.
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Police allege the syndicate stole the vehicles using a CAN bus tool, a method used by thieves in Victoria, where there was a spike in Toyota thefts earlier this year in what appears to be a similar organized crime operation.
As described by Daily SparkzAccording to Daily Sparkz, the tool for accessing the CAN bus (which stands for Controller Area Network) “exists only to steal cars.”
It allows thieves to disable features such as a vehicle’s immobilizer, unlock the doors and start the engine – all while disabling Toyota’s vehicle tracking system.
Toyota Australia has revealed it Daily Sparkz It is working to combat the problem across Australia.
The Brisbane syndicate is accused of targeting popular Toyota vehicles with the intention of dismantling the vehicles and selling the parts overseas.
It was described in court that Mr Mahasely had “recently” set up a car parts business, Sherwood Car Parts P/L, in the Brisbane suburb of Rocklea.
The Company’s Australian Business Number (ABN) and Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) registration is dated August 27, 2025.
Web search results describe the company as “temporarily closed.”
Defense lawyer Lewis Hunter, of Brisbane-based Guest Lawyers, argued Mr Mahasely was not a flight risk because he was cooperative with police, knew no witnesses personally and the alleged crimes did not involve violence.
Despite Mr. Hunter’s arguments, the judge denied the defendant bail on the grounds that the alleged crimes were “highly organized” and “sophisticated” and that granting bail posed an “unacceptable risk” given the “intensity, scale and dollar amount of the crimes.”
Mr Mahasely will stand trial in the matter in January 2026.
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