'Meticulous' car cannibals who preyed on football fans and filmed themselves stripping vehicles jailed

Two men have been jailed for a large conspiracy of car cannibalism offences across the West Midlands.

Mohammed Khan and Mohammed Haydar were jailed on Friday (June 26) after pleading guilty at Birmingham Crown Court to conspiracy to steal from motor vehicles.

Khan and Haydar were both jailed for four years and three months.

The court heard how the duo had carried out a large-scale operation of car stripping, commonly known as 'car cannibalism', with Khan admitting involvement in 98 incidents and Haydar admitting 20.

West Midlands Police said Khan, 23, of Croxton Grove in Birmingham, and Haydar, 23, of Fenhurst Road, Birmingham, carried out the offences between December 2022 and October 2024 across the West Midlands region, when they would approach parked cars and strip the vehicles within minutes. This included stealing headlights, bumpers, mirrors, bonnets and more.

Car owners would find that their vehicles had been stripped of car parts, preventing them from carrying out everyday duties.

The force said it worked closely with Birmingham City Football Club after some supporters raised concerns about vehicle crime, specifically about parts being stripped from cars which had been parked in areas surrounding St. Andrews at Knighthead Park on matchdays.

A victim personal statement was read out in court on behalf of the football club, saying: "There has been an identified increase in reports of vehicle cannibalisation occurring in areas surrounding Birmingham City FC fixtures.

“Offenders are targeting vehicles parked by supporters and visitors attending matches, removing valuable components and parts before leaving the vehicles immobilised.

"Victims often return following the match to discover significant damage and theft, resulting in substantial financial loss, inconvenience, recovery costs, insurance implications, and considerable distress.

"These offences have the potential to negatively affect public confidence in attending football fixtures and can damage the reputation of the local area as a safe and welcoming environment for supporters.

"There is also a wider community impact, as vehicle crime contributes to fear of crime amongst residents and businesses operating in the vicinity of the stadium.

"In response, officers from West Midlands Police, including local neighbourhood policing teams and match-day policing resources, are maintaining a visible presence in the areas surrounding Birmingham City FC on matchdays.

“This deployment is designed to deter offenders, identify suspicious activity, reassure supporters and local residents, and provide an immediate response capability should offences occur.

"West Midlands Police continue to work closely with Birmingham City FC, local authorities, businesses, car park operators, and partner agencies to identify vulnerable locations, share intelligence, and implement crime prevention measures.

"Birmingham City would like to highlight the partnership work with their own match-day stewards in communicating to the supporters on match days which helped highlight the problems which led to positive action being taken by all parties involved.

"The ongoing policing operation demonstrates a commitment to protecting supporters, safeguarding the local community, and ensuring that individuals attending football matches can do so safely and with confidence."

A spokesman for West Midlands Police said: “Both Haydar and Khan carried out cannibalism offences in the surrounding areas.

“Our work to tackle the issue continues, and we’re working more closely in partnership with Birmingham City as we increase patrols and aim to stop this crime before it happens.

“As a force, we are committed to tackling this distressing and intrusive crime, and our Vehicle Crime Team have been investigating both Khan and Haydar for over three years. We have carried out multiple warrants at their home addresses and arrested them which led to multiple charges.

“Our investigators went through hundreds of hours of CCTV footage, and forensic examinations which enabled them to ID Khan and Haydar as the offenders.

“Both would film themselves carrying out the cannibalism offences would post on social media after the thefts with bumpers, and they would take photos of the stripped vehicles bragging about the thefts they had carried out.”

DC Choudhury, who led the investigation, said: "Both Haydar and Khan were meticulous in their offending.

"They carefully planned each theft that they carried out, where they would cause serious distress to their victims who were left with vehicles without parts.

"Thankfully, we have been able to put together an extensive investigation which found both Haydar and Khan carried out almost 100 cannibalism offences, and now they will be spending time behind bars."