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.
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.
"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."
Superintendent O’Neill, who is also Greater Manchester Police'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.
“The way they work is fast, and the parts are quickly brought in, dismantled and then sold on.
"They tend to be based in locations such as garages or industrial units and we need information from you to help us dismantle these set ups and get stolen property back to victims.”
Officers say that one alleged victim has already been found and that his power tools have been returned to him.
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They were believed to have been in his transit van, which was stolen in the Tameside area in March this year.
Police have released a range of images of the power tools they found at the suspected chop shop in Astley.
They have appealed for anyone who believes the tools may belong to them, or who thinks they may know someone who they belong to, to call 0161 856 3622.
Anyone who sees any other kind of suspicious behaviour has been encouraged to call police on 101.
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