9:01 am, March 26, 2025
A used car salesman has avoided jail after he admitted to trying to sell a stolen Mercedes.
Jake Bush initially took the German motor in good faith but soon began to suspect it was stolen when he was unable to secure the vehicle’s log book.
Despite his suspicions, the 26-year-old made no effort to find out the truth or go to the authorities and even dragged his brother into the storm by asking him to prep the car for sale.
His plan was eventually thwarted when police stopped the car, while it was being driven on false plates, and the brothers’ fingerprints were found inside.
The pair were arrested for handling stolen goods and have both now pleaded guilty at South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court.
The court heard that Jake, of Ernest Street, Pelton, was the ‘primary mover’ in the plot, the Sunderland Echo reports. Meanwhile, the bench heard that his younger brother had ‘played a minor part in the enterprise’.
Since being recovered, the Mercedes – valued at £24,000 – has been returned to its rightful owner and the eldest Bush brother has walked away from the motor trade after being ‘burnt’ by the experience.
Prosecutor John Garside told the court: ‘The complainant says that her motor vehicle was stolen on January 11. It had been locked and secured at night.
‘It was later seen in Belton Close in Washington, with registration plates that had been cloned.
‘On examination, the defendants’ fingerprints were found in the footwell. They were charged.’
In a statement, the car’s owner said she now wanted to sell the vehicle after it had been ‘tarnished’ by the theft.
Robin Ford, defending both men, said: ‘Jake accepts fully that he got the car and asked his brother to do it up.
‘It’s not the two of them that got the car, but they’ve been jointly charged because they were working on the car.
‘Jake got the vehicle and perhaps closes his mind and gets his brother involved.
‘When you read the reports, Jake fully accepts that he got a bargain, and he thought he was going to get the logbook.
‘It didn’t cross his mind at all that it may be stolen, but he did think it was too good to be true. He kept the car.’
After hearing all the evidence, magistrates handed Jake Bush a 20 week prison term, suspended for 15 months.
He must also complete 12 rehabilitation days and pay a £154 victim surcharge, as well as costs totalling £85.
His brother was slapped with a 15-month community order and ordered to complete 225 hours of unpaid work.
He must also attend five rehabilitation days and pay a £114 victim surcharge and £85 court costs.
