Two brothers ran a ‘chop shop’, breaking down high end stolen cars and selling the parts on eBay - and raking in more than £120,000. Connor and Kieran Maher operated out of a Radcliffe mill and took around 16 new and expensive cars which they broke down in order to sell parts on.
The cars recovered ranged from wholly intact, to merely wheels and panels, Minshull Street Crown Court heard. Many of the cars could almost be fitted back together.
Connor, 29, had set up an eBay account under the name ‘connormaher92’ before changing it to ‘C.Parts’. The site substantially increased in traffic following the Connor and Kieran’s from custody for separate offences.
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“A speculative search identified that eBay user account connormaher92 listed numerous vehicle parts for sale. It was clear from the adverts that the vast majority of parts were from ‘late model’ or nearly new vehicles, with volume parts from the same relatively new vehicle,” Mark Kellet, prosecuting, said.
On March 17 2020, officers attended at Unit 58, Pioneer Mill, and found Kieran on the phone outside, and Connor driving a white Berlingo van at the back. Following a search of Connor’s address in Poynton in April, officers found a Ford Fiesta, a Range Rover and a BMW which contained vehicle parts, £100 in cash, a registration plate and a radio frequency detector used to block transmission from devices such as tracking devices.
On the Range Rover, the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) had been ground away. The VIN displayed on the driver’s door and the front windscreen matched the registration of the vehicle. However, the engine number related to a different car which was stolen on January 6. The GPS system had also been disabled.
At the mill, officers found a number of cars without registration plates and in varying states of destruction. All ‘marketable parts’ were being systematically removed from each vehicle prior to the main vehicle bodyshell being cut up into small sections for easy disposal.
Police also found engines and gearboxes from Audi’s, VW Golfs and Polos, BMWs, as well as two tracker blockers. The vehicles were said to have been stolen following home burglaries.
The court was told that Connor and Kieran had earlier been arrested for their part in growing cannabis at a number of houses across Greater Manchester.
On September 19 2017, a man was assaulted and kidnapped, later alleging the Maher brothers were responsible. This led the police to investigate them in relation to the production of the class B drug.
Houses in Hollingworth, Cheadle Hulme, Hazel Grove, Swinton and Wilmslow were searched, with officers finding a large account of drug paraphernalia including electronic scales, 600W lamps, cannabis plants and drying racks.
They both later pleaded guilty to the production of cannabis on the day of their trial, and were released from custody. They were not tried on the assault or kidnap of the man as the CPS offered no evidence.
Connor Maher was said to have no previous convictions while Kieran Maher, 31, had two previous convictions for five offences including possession with intent to supply cannabis.
Due to the time the brothers had already spent in prison, it is likely they will be released immediately, their barristers Ian McMeekin and David Wood told the court.
Sentencing them, Judge Paul Lawton said the brothers chose to bond through ‘serious criminality’ dating back to Spring 2017 when they began by ‘commercially farming cannabis’. The judge described it as a ‘prolonged and lucrative’ venture.
Speaking of the chop-shop conspiracy, he said: “You started as soon as you were released from prison. You came out of prison, and freshly embarked on a new venture with some gusto.
“This was a professionally organised conspiracy to receive stolen car parts. You were running what is commonly known as a ‘chop shop’, the breaking down of received stolen and relatively high end cars, namely Audis and BMWs.
“This was a callous destruction of the vehicles to fund a lucrative tax-free lifestyle. In total £120,000 worth of car parts were sold on eBay.”
Connor Maher, of Spinners Lane, was jailed for five years and five months; Kieran Maher, of Ellesmere Avenue, was jailed for 36 months.
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