GMP officers recover stolen van taken from Devon the previous evening

Officers from GMP’s Safer Roads Targeting Team recovered a stolen Vauxhall Vivraro less than 12 hours after it had been reported missing.

The van was taken from Ilfracombe in Devon and was reported as stolen on the evening of Friday 2 June 2023.

The Vivaro activated an ANPR camera in Edenfield, Lancashire, which suggested the route they were travelling on would see them enter Greater Manchester.

Intelligence collected by the ANPR cameras identified that it was a cloned vehicle which saw officers spring into action, tracking the van from junction 18 on the M60 to Whitefield in Bury.

A joint effort comprising of SRTT and Roads Policing Unit officers saw them use a box tactic to bring the Vivaro to a safe stop and the ultimate arrest of the two occupants inside the van.

Both men were arrested with the driver of the van charged with driving whilst disqualified and having no insurance. He was remanded in custody to appear in court on Monday 5 June 2023, where he pleaded guilty to both charges.

The second man was released, with no further action being taken against the passenger.

PC Paul Ashworth from the Safer Roads Targeting Team said: “With the intelligence we received from the ANPR cameras and the markers on the vehicle registration details, we knew that we had to act quickly while it was in Greater Manchester.

“I took an educated guess in which direction the vehicle would travel after the first ping came through, so I am really pleased that we could get behind it, follow it and bring it to a safe stop.

“It is a great result for us and it has seen another criminal taken off the roads.”