11/06/2026
VEHICLE CRIME: Seven arrested and stolen vehicles recovered in 'chop shop' raids 🚗 🚨
On Monday (8 June), enquiries led to officers raiding a scrap yard in Doncaster.
They discovered an extensive and elaborate set up involving multiple vehicles, containers and parts, and it is believed the yard was being used as a chop shop.
A chop shop is a term used to describe a place where stolen vehicles are dismantled so that their parts can be sold or used to repair other stolen vehicles.
Five men, aged between 30 and 56, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of theft of a motor vehicle.
Three vehicles reported as stolen were discovered at the yard and have since been recovered.
The same day, officers in Barnsley attended a site where they located a stolen Mercedes and a Range Rover which had been stolen from an address as part of a two-in-one burglary.
Officers also located a shipping container full of engines, a chassis and several car parts suspected to be stolen from the two stolen vehicles.
Two men, aged 22 and 66, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of theft of a motor vehicle.
🔈 Detective Inspector Leanne Hearnshaw said: "Vehicle theft has a huge impact on innocent people.
"People work hard to own and drive their cars and the last thing a person wants is for their vehicle to be stolen and stripped down for parts.
"These chop shops are often linked to wider organised criminality which brings fear and potential violence to people's doorsteps.
"We will continue to work to disrupt these operations, arrest perpetrators and locate stolen vehicles so they can be reunited with their owners and so we can keep our communities safe."
