A stolen car ring targeting private buyers across Europe for the past six months is being investigated by the Garda and British authorities. Patrick Logue reports.
It came to light last August when thousands of blank vehicle registration documents were stolen after they were sent for shredding in Luton by the Driver Vehicle Licencing Agency (DVLA), based in Swansea, Wales.
But a number of the blank documents have turned up in the Republic, resulting in the seizure of at least 20 vehicles - mostly vans and four-wheel-drive jeeps. Most recently a vehicle was seized by the Garda in Co Longford on February 21st last.
The Garda are aware of several other vehicles which are in circulation but cannot be found.
Criminal elements based in Britain have built up associations with criminals here in an effort to sell the stolen vehicles. They have also turned up in Sweden, Spain, Cyprus, Portugal, as well as in Britain itself.
Det Sgt Finbar Garland of the Garda Stolen Motor Vehicle Investigation Unit said it was not clear how many of the documents were taken but they probably numbered in "the thousands rather than in the hundreds".
Criminals working in Britain who obtained the blank forms used them to give new identities, or identities of similar "write-offs", to stolen vehicles before bringing them to Ireland and other countries to be sold on the second-hand car market to unsuspecting buyers.
The true status of the vehicles was only discovered when innocent purchasers tried to re-register them with Irish number plates and documentation was sent back to the DVLA in Swansea.
The stolen vans and jeeps were sold privately in the classified publications or "small ads".
"Forged documents are relatively easy to spot but these are genuine documents with false information," Det Sgt Garland said. He expects more stolen vehicles to turn up in the Republic and warned members of the public to be vigilant when buying English-registered vehicles, particularly commercial vans and four-wheel-drive jeeps. He added that owners who fall victim to the scam "will lose the vehicle and the money paid for it".
The DVLA said the documents, on close examination, will bear a serial number in slightly lighter print than the rest of the document. The serial number may also be out of alignment, a spokesman said. Members of the public who wish to check whether any document is genuine can ring a DVLA helpline on 00-44-870241-1878.
The investigation is being co-ordinated by the National Criminal Intelligence unit in London, who have also been in contact with the Irish intelligence service as well as the Garda Stolen Motor Vehicle Investigation Unit.