UK jail, payback for Indian-origin stolen car dealer

Patel, 40, has to pay back £1,369,661.90 after being subject to a confiscation order under the Proceeds of Crime Act on Friday. He was previously jailed at the Croydon Crown Court for eight years, Scotland Yard said on Monday.

Chirag Patel, who handled 19 high-value stolen vehicles and set up a rentals company, has been ordered to pay back over £1 million pounds after being convicted and jailed for eight years.

Patel was arrested in February 2015 after discovering five high-value vehicles in the basement car park at his home address. (Scotland Yard)

Patel, 40, has to pay back £1,369,661.90 after being subject to a confiscation order under the Proceeds of Crime Act on Friday. He was previously jailed at the Croydon Crown Court for eight years, Scotland Yard said on Monday.

The offences for which he has been convicted are conspiracy to handle stolen goods in relation to 19 stolen vehicles and nine additional stolen car keys; and possession of criminal property in relation to more than £530,000 of unexplained cash deposits identified from his three personal bank accounts.

Patel was arrested in February 2015 after discovering five high-value vehicles in the basement car park at his home address.

During a search of Patel’s property, officers recovered 26 sets of car keys, as well as lists of vehicles and registrations, machines for accessing on-board computers in vehicles and programming keys and a number of mobile phones, tablets and laptops.

Nine sets of keys stolen from Jaguar Land Rover’s plant in Solihull, West Midlands, and a laptop stolen during a burglary in the Streatham area were also discovered. He was found using the stolen vehicles to run an ‘off-the-books’ vehicle rental business where vehicles were rented out to his associates and contacts.

The vehicles had been stolen by unknown individuals during burglaries and keyless car thefts across London between October 2012 and January 2015 and were stored at or near addresses owned by Patel and his family, or with associates, the police said.

Patel also received a 10 year default prison sentence which will be imposed if he fails to pay back the money.