Stolen Toyota vans stripped in lucrative 'chop shop'

More than 550 Toyota vans were stolen in 18 months. Photo / APN

Car thieves continue to target the humble Toyota Hiace van to be dismantled and shipped overseas in parts.

Detectives in Counties-Manukau have busted a sophisticated car-stripping operation run from the former Tegel Chicken factory in Manurewa.

Police and the Immigration Service executed a search warrant at the industrial site on Great South Rd and interrupted the alleged "chop shop" in action.

Neo Faapepele, his brother Ioane Faapepele and Kenny Lolohea have appeared in Manukau District Court charged with receiving stolen goods.

Detective Sergeant Shaun Vickers, of the tactical crime unit, said surveillance linked more than 25 Toyota vans to the property, allegedly stolen to order and stripped for parts.

The bodies are believed to be sold to scrap-metal dealers and the parts shipped overseas.

Mr Vickers said stolen vans could be bought for as little as $300 and stripped into $1000 profit.

He appealed for any information regarding the premises at 320 Great South Rd. "We believe this operation has been running for several months and members of the public may have seen suspicious comings and goings into the property."

Last year, police involved in an operation codenamed Beryl found hundreds of Toyota vans were being stolen, broken down into parts and shipped overseas to countries such as Afghanistan.

The van has been the most stolen model of vehicle in Japan for the past two years because its parts are valued for their durability.

Police noticed a similar pattern emerging in Auckland, where more than 550 Toyota vans were stolen in 18 months.

Only 18 per cent were recovered, compared to the normal recovery rate for stolen cars of 67 per cent.

Car crime is big business in New Zealand and just one in five thefts is solved by police. Each year, between 20,000 (police figures) and 40,000 (insurance estimates) cars are stolen. Between 8000 and 16,000 are never found.

And as one critic noted, the 40 per cent of stolen cars that are never found do not "simply vanish into thin air".

Insurance Council chief executive Chris Ryan has previously said police need more staff to tackle the problem.

"We think the cost to the insurance industry is more than $100 million a year. Which is a heck of a lot of money to our customers."

*Any information can be forwarded to the Counties-Manukau South tactical crime unit on (09) 261-1300 or to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800-555-111 or crimestoppers-nz.org

THE NUMBERS

40,000 estimated car thefts in NZ.

16,000 never found.

$1000 profit for stripping a stolen car.