Car boot sale in Rainham targeted for suspected stolen tools

Around 1,000 suspected stolen tools marked with forensic water have been seized from a car boot sale in east London by the Metropolitan Police who used a dog to sniff them out.

The Met worked with Essex Police and trading standards officers to carry out a large search of the Willow Farm Car Boot Sale in Rainham on Sunday and found £50,000 worth of these items.

A number of suspected stolen bikes, as well as cash, illegal vapes and other counterfeit goods were also confiscated.

Four men, aged between 40 and 60, from Hackney and Southend-on-Sea, have been arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods.

Insp Mark Connolly, from the Met’s neighbourhood policing team in east London, said: “We’ve heard from hard-working Londoners about the financial and personal impact of tool theft and we’re working hard across the Met to tackle it.

“As well as working with partners to target prolific offenders in proactive and intelligence-led operations such as this, we’re also carrying out tool marking events to make it harder for criminals to sell on stolen goods.”

The Met says it will work over the coming weeks to identify the tools and trace their original owners.

Any tradespeople or those in possession of power tools are advised to mark their property, take photographs, and record serial numbers so that, in the event of theft, officers have more chance of returning property.

Marking tools with SelectaDNA forensic water also helps officers identify stolen goods.

The Met added: “If the price seems too good to be true, it could be the item is either stolen or fake. Buying goods you know or suspect to be stolen is a criminal offence.”