Britain's biggest keyless car gang raided by police
Police have smashed what is believed to be Britain's biggest keyless car gang, allegedly linked to 90 vehicle thefts worth almost £5m.
More than 400 officers from Essex Police, the Metropolitan Police and the British Transport Police carried out raids on the gang, who are suspected of stealing BMWs, Mercedes and Range Rovers.
Detectives believe they could be behind more thefts, after carrying out 25 simultaneous raids on homes and factories at 5.45am on Thursday.
Officers found jamming equipment, believed to have been used by the gang to steal luxury keyless cars. Around a dozen cars were recovered following a raid on an Essex farm, with detectives believing many others have already been sold on by the gang.
It comes amid wider concerns over keyless car thefts, with the Telegraph revealing last month that owners were being hit with rising insurance premiums.
The average driver’s motor premium has risen by a quarter from £387 a year to £477 since 2014, as car theft has jumped by 60 per cent in the same period.
Essex Police Chief Inspector Lewis Basford, who led the operation, described the group as "very modern and very sophisticated".
The cars were stolen over 16 months, between Nov 2018 and Feb 2020.
A cannabis factory and £90,000 in cash was also recovered during the raids.
The arrests followed months of collaborative work from several different organisations including the Government Agency Intelligence Network (GAIN). GAIN is made up of Government departments and law enforcement agencies which share intelligence and information to disrupt organised crime groups.
