A specialist officer dedicated to returning stolen vehicles to their rightful owners has been introduced in Staffordshire.

As part of the launch of our road crime team (RCT) in October last year we made the decision to reinvest in the role of stolen vehicle examiner.

PC Matt Leigh scrutinises seizures and uses any intelligence gathered to help the team track down other missing vehicles.

In his first six months, from 1 October to 31 March, he seized 49 vehicles, of which 32 were stolen, carried out 95 stolen vehicle examinations, and recovered around £605,000-worth of criminal assets, including vehicles and other property.

He has also helped CID officers by identifying a number of ‘chop shop’ vehicle parts.

PC Leigh said: “My work as a stolen vehicle examiner also includes identifying whether a vehicle has been cloned with another. When a vehicle’s identity has been altered it’s my job to figure out why and how and to find out its true identity using a range of approved methods.”

In 2024, we seized 1,241 stolen vehicles – 55 more than in 2023.

Chief Inspector Scott McGrath, who leads the RCT, said: “This increase in identification and seizure of stolen vehicles has resulted in more arrests and charges. It has also given us a wealth of intelligence.

“The work of PC Leigh and the team stretches beyond recovering individual stolen vehicles and encompasses the wider network of criminality behind each theft.”