'Car-ring gang' deny conspiracy

A car-ringing gang conspired to steal and sell £500,000 worth of cars, a court has heard.

Kevin O'Neill, 34, Anthony Joseph, 30, Robert Wilson, 33, Robert Gibbs, 32, and Angel Brown, 31, are accused of disguising up to 32 vehicles.

They all deny two counts of conspiracy to disguise criminal property and conspiracy to handle stolen goods - relating to vehicles and car parts.

The defendants, all from Bedfordshire, are on trial at Luton Crown Court.

The cars were stolen by a prolific thief across four counties and then handed on to the gang who set about disguising the vehicles' identities, it was claimed.

'Stolen to order'

Prosecutor Christopher Donnellan QC said: "Car ringing is when a car starts off having one identity and, for reasons to do with making money out of it after it's been stolen, it's given another identity."

Mr Donnellan told the court the five defendants had conspired with a number of other people - several of whom have already pleaded guilty - to change the identities of up to 32 cars.

He said the gang would steal cars that matched vehicles bought from salvage companies.

The identity of the salvage car was then moved on to a stolen car so it would not be recognised as stolen.

This was done to cars stolen from across Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire, the court heard.

The stolen cars identities' were eradicated by taking off the number plates and grinding out the Vehicle Identification Number, jurors were told.

'Long-running investigation'

The court heard the cars were mainly saloon cars of a "reasonable value" and some vans.

Mr Donnellan showed jurors aerial photographs taken by the police in 2005 as part of a long-running investigation into the scam, known as Operation Chord.

These show a workshop in Pepperstock, Bedfordshire, where cars were being worked on by the group, it was alleged.

Mr O'Neill, of Repton Close, Luton; Mr Joseph, of Kimberly Close, Luton; Mr Wilson, of Bracknell Close, Luton; Ms Brown, of St James Close, Pulloxhill; and Mr Gibbs, of Repton Close, Luton all deny being part of a vehicle ringing scam.

The case continues.