A 1967 Jaguar XKE sports car stolen from its original owner in 1968 was recovered at the Los Angeles/Long Beach port complex and it will be returned to its now-82-year-old owner, authorities said Wednesday.
The car was among five vehicles recovered recently at the port, according to Lee Harty of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The white Jaguar convertible was in a container that was being shipped to the Netherlands, Harty said. It had been repainted from its original gray color.
“This is just a miracle, a miracle,” the car’s owner — who lives in Florida — said via telephone during a display of the vehicle at a customs facility. “I was 36 years old then, and now I’m 82. It was my first good car and (my) favorite … a wonderful car.”
Authorities at the port also seized a stolen 1969 Chevrolet Corvette, along with three other fraudulently obtained cars.
— Staff and Wire Reports