Rizwan Javid, 41, of Salcombe Drive, Chadwell Heath and Hussain Kapadia, 34, of Auckland Road, Ilford have been sentenced to nearly five years in prison between them for their part in a crime gang which stole more than 50 high-value motor vehicles.
Both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to handling stolen goods, conspiracy to commit fraud and conspiracy to transfer criminal property, and were handed sentences of two years and eight months, and two years and three months, respectively.
It follows an investigation by Surrey Police into a string of targeted thefts across London and Surrey, which uncovered the handling and cloning of more than 50 stolen vehicles between February 2022 and April 2024.
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The vehicles were mainly Toyota, Lexus, Hyundai and Kia cars and the total value was more than £1 million.
The gang altered Vehicle Identification Numbers (VIN) numbers and used fake documents to pass off stolen cars as legitimate, deceiving dealerships into buying the vehicles.
Two other men, from Wallington and Mitcham, were also jailed following the investigation.
Both Kapadia and Javid were arrested in September 2024, and police were also able to seize a stolen BMW parked on Kapadia’s driveway at the time of the arrest.
Detective Constable Alex Boxall, of the Surrey Police serious and organised crime unit, said: “These four men orchestrated a highly organised scheme to clone stolen vehicles, disguising their crimes through the use of fraudulent documentation and selling the cars on to the motor trade.
“50 vehicle owners were directly affected and this criminal activity also had a significant impact on insurance companies and car dealerships, who suffered losses as a result of the group’s actions.”
