A joint operation involving the Garda and police in the North has uncovered a massive cross-border stolen car scam worth hundreds of thousands of euro, it emerged tonight.
Twenty six cars and vans, some of which were only weeks old, were seized by police in the Dundalk area in the operation.
Most of the vehicles were stolen in Northern Ireland and taken across the border into the Republic.
The criminal gang behind the scam is understood to have used blank vehicle registration books stolen in Northern Ireland to illegally import the vehicles into the country, a police spokesman said.
The vehicles then gained genuine Customs clearance certificates, which allowed them to be registered legally in the Republic.
The majority of the vehicles were high-performance vehicles, including four-wheel drive vans.
They were mainly sold on through magazines and trade papers, to unsuspecting buyers, the spokesman added. A criminal gang based in the border area is believed to have been behind the scam.
Four people have been arrested and questioned in connection with the scam in recent weeks, although a police spokesman said the investigation was ongoing and no charges had yet been brought.
PA