Three men have been arrested and a range of allegedly stolen power tools found after police raided a suspected “chop shop". Officers stormed the industrial unit in Astley on Wednesday, July 31 and now several weeks on are still looking to reunite the power tools with their rightful owners. The three men, aged 24, 39 and 53, were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to steal motor vehicles and have been bailed pending further enquiries.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) Wigan Superintendent Danny O'Neil said: “We conducted the raids on July 31 and the teams have been working hard since behind the scenes to reunite the items we believe were stolen with their rightful owners. “We work to tackle vehicle crime in Greater Manchester by utilising many different specialist units and branches across our force to ensure we are intelligence-led in our approach to tackling vehicle crime and stolen vehicle parts. A range of power tools were found (Image: GMP) "Dismantling and taking these criminal enterprises them out of business seriously disrupts criminal networks who think it is ok to use stolen parts from victims for their own personal gain.
" Supt O’Neill, the force’s lead for vehicle crime, explained how “chop shops” work. He said: "Criminals working in chop shops strip down vehicles that have been stolen from victims, and use these parts to sell on for a profit. Police suspect the tools were stolen (Image: GMP) “The way they work is fast, and the parts are quickly broug.
