22 different cars found in industrial-scale Black Country chop shop

Officers found the chop shop at an industrial site off Station Drive, Brierley Hill, on February 10 after a Ford Fiesta taken the previous day was spotted outside.

Inside the unit were bodyshells from several cars, including another Fiesta stolen in Coventry on February 3, a BMW taken in Wolverhampton the following day, and a Skoda Octavia stolen in Leicestershire on New Year’s Eve.

A West Midlands spokesman said: "Our investigations have now revealed evidence that at least 22 stolen cars have been taken there to be dismantled.

"One of them was a Mercedes 180 AMG robbed at knifepoint from a woman in Wolverhampton on November 23 last year.

"There was nothing left of the vehicle – but our eagle-eyed vehicle examiner recovered a partially-charred school ID badge belonging to the owner, a teacher, from an oil drum that had been used as a fire pit."

The spokesman added: "And that helped us track down the victim and open up new lines of enquiry. It’s one of the biggest chop shops we’ve identified in recent months.

"We’ve found parts linked to 10 Ford Fiestas and five BMWs; most were stolen in our region but one Fiesta was taken in Cannock, Staffordshire, on October 28 last year."

Vehicle theft has increased by 37 per cent in the last year and police suspect many of them end up in chop shops where they are dismantled for parts.

The police force is urging people to support its car crime campaign by reporting any suspicious behaviour at garages or industrial units that could indicate they’re acting as chop shops.

The tell-tale signs of a chop shop could include noise coming from units late at night or in the early hours of the morning, vehicles that look out of place going in to workshops and not coming back out, large amounts of car parts being stored in sometimes in odd places such as gardens.

A 34-year-old man remains on bail while the investigation continues.