, along with state police and Clark County sheriff's deputies, raided two North Portland auto businesses on North Columbia Boulevard, a home on Jantzen Beach and two residences in Vancouver on Tuesday as part of an auto-theft investigation.

The case began several months ago after North Precinct detectives began looking into stolen vehicle reports in their area. That led to a "significant'' auto-theft investigation, said Sgt. Pete Simpson, Portland police spokesman.

Portland detectives are investigating allegations that the businesses were buying stolen and abandoned vehicles and crushing them and reselling their scrap metal without obtaining the required titles or ownership documents.

They have made no arrests, but have detained several people for questioning and plan to present the case to a Multnomah County grand jury in the next week to seek felony indictments, Simpson said.

About 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, Portland police, including officers from its Special Emergency Reaction Team, raided West Coast Metal Recycling at 9101 N. Columbia Blvd., previously known as West Coast Car Crushing, and A-1 Light Truck and Van Parts, just west at 9609 N. Columbia Blvd. Both are affiliated with the same family.

Records show owner Joseph C. Schneider of West Coast Car Crushing had changed the business name in May 2013, according to David House, a spokesman with the state Department of Motor Vehicle records. The dismantling license for West Coast Metal Recycling was to be in effect until May 2016.

A1 Light Truck and Van Parts in Portland, run by Tony Schneider, was fined by the state in 2007 for destroying a car before obtaining ownership documents. The company paid the $500 fine in 2007, and its dismantling license is good until June 30, 2015, according to state records.

Anyone in the business of buying or selling motor vehicles to dismantle or crush them must have a state dismantler license.

If a vehicle comes to the business without a title or ownership document, the business must keep the vehicle confined to an area off-limits to customers and must not remove any parts until obtaining an ownership document.

Often, the companies make money by selling the scrap metal from the crushed cars.

State regulations also require the businesses to maintain records of cars or car parts it has purchased for at least three years -- including the last title in Oregon, last known license plate numbers, vehicle identification number and date the vehicle was acquired. The record of the car purchase and its title must be submitted to the state DMV.

The state DMV can issue civil penalties or cancel a business license for regulatory violations, House said.

"If we don't get paperwork, we don't know what's going on,'' House said, unless there's a complaint made.

Police said they planned to seize West Coast's large car-crushing machine and other vehicles.

"It was kind of a shock to see all this going on,'' said Tammy O'Connor, part owner of the neighboring Curt's RV Storage shop on North Columbia Boulevard. "We don't get that kind of excitement around here.''

O'Connor said Tony Schneider keeps a private motor home stored on their property, and police plan to seize it, too.

The residences raided belong to the Schneiders at 330 North Lotus Isle Drive in Portland and 516 N.W. Fourth Plain Blvd. and 514 N.W. 40th St. in Vancouver, police said.

Calls to the Schneiders have not been returned.

Other agencies involved in the investigation are: the Oregon Department of Justice, the state Department of Environmental Quality, the Internal Revenue Service, the National Insurance Crime Bureau, the Oregon Department of Human Services and the Clackamas County Sheriff's office.

--Maxine Bernstein