Greater Manchester gang behind luxury car ‘chop shop’ jailed

The convictions come after seven other men were sentenced in 2022 for their roles in the operation, including Asif Hussain, the Bolton man identified by police as the ringleader of the gang.

The group stole 97 vehicles between 2020 and 2021, including Ranger Rover, BMW, Porsche and Mercedes brands.

Asif Matadar, 40, of Bolton, was jailed for three years and six months for conspiracy to steal, while Zeeshan Ali, 34, of Tameside, was jailed for three years and nine months for conspiracy to handle stolen goods.

Shewaz Rehman, 29, of Oldham, was sentenced to four years and nine months in jail for conspiracy to handle stolen goods, and Imran Taj, 43, also of Oldham, was jailed for four years on the same charge

Adam Elwood, 30, of Chadderton, was jailed for six years for two counts of handling stolen goods and drug offences, and Mohammed Irfan, 26, of Oldham, was jailed for three years for conspiracy to handle stolen goods.

James Hopkinson, 29, of Oldham, was handed an eight-month sentence suspended for 12 months for handling stolen goods.

The gang had threatened to kill one of their victims with a hammer before stealing one of the vehicles.

Other cars were taken when the gang posed as valets at Manchester airport.

“Car theft has a massive impact on people’s lives,2 DCI Smethurst said.

“A lot of people had these cars on finance agreements, and were left thousands of pounds out of pocket.”