Double arrest after stolen van spotted and recovered in Mansfield

Officers were out on patrol in Berry Hill, Mansfield, when they saw a vehicle they suspected as being on cloned plates.

Following that initial sighting at 6.40pm on Monday, April 15, officers located the van travelling along the A617 Sherwood Way South.

The roads policing unit then carried out a reinforced stop a few minutes later at the A614 Ollerton roundabout.

Despite the driver trying to ram their way free, the actions of the officers in attendance prevented them from doing so.

By that point, the officers had already checked the system and found the vehicle in question had been reported stolen from Staffordshire three days earlier.

Two men, aged 33 and 43, were subsequently arrested on suspicion of theft of a motor vehicle.

The 33-year-old was also arrested on suspicion of fraudulently using a registration mark, driving without a licence, and driving without valid insurance.

Sergeant Mark Baker, of Nottinghamshire Police’s roads policing unit, said: “As this stop showed, county borders won’t prevent our Roads Policing teams from following up reports of potential criminality.

“After establishing that this vehicle had been reported stolen from the Staffordshire area, the team were quickly able to track it down and stop it when it strayed into Nottinghamshire.

“Losing a means of transport can be debilitating for people and can have a real impact on their livelihoods, so recovering this stolen van was a great result for the team.”