Unscrupulous thieves sold a stolen SUV to unsuspecting buyers, then stole it back from them, before dumping it in a Birmingham street. Buyers in Wales bought a white and black Toyota C-HR sports utility vehicle not realising the vehicle was stolen.
The thieves then stole it back from them and drove to George Road in South Yardley, off the main A45 Coventry Road, and left the vehicle. But eagle-eyed officers from Birmingham’s Stechford Priority Crime Team spotted the car and checked it out on Monday (December 30).
The vehicle was found to be on cloned number plates, as the thieves tried to disguise its identity. And it also had all its vehicle identification numbers (VIN) changed.
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The vehicle has now been recovered with police vowing it will never be used to con people again. West Midlands Police’s Birmingham Priority Crime Team posted on X and said: “PCT Stechford have located & recovered this stolen Toyota C-HR. The vehicle was displaying cloned plates & also had all the VIN numbers altered.
“Fraudulently sold and then stolen back from innocent buyers. The vehicle won’t be used for such fraud again.”