Gloucestershire's Mermaid
TER was working in support of a Gloucestershire Police Operation Mermaid, targeting vehicle movements on the national roads network, when a low loader was driven into the service area where the check was taking place. On the back of the vehicle was what looked like a newish John Deere 6920 tractor. At TER we know that a particular criminal gang, working across Europe, has been stealing John Deeres on an industrial scale, changing their identities – cloning them – and then selling them as far afield as Australia.
On inspecting this tractor, it was found that all aspects of its identity had been significantly interfered with. In this case, the TER operator and police officers found that the index plate was fake in a number of ways. The serial number was a rather poor quality fake plate, and the stamped-in chassis number had been over-stamped. The TER operator correctly identified the true serial number and further checks revealed that the tractor had been stolen just four days before in Somerset. The driver, who was on his way to the Irish Republic, was arrested and the tractor returned to its owner.