3:34 pm, January 27, 2025
Kent Trading Standards have successfully prosecuted a trio of criminals who had removed mileage equivalent to four trips to the moon from used cars.
Ryan Regan, 34, of Wallace Way, Broadstairs, Thomas Hamilton, 34, of Hugin Avenue, Broadstairs, and Darren Cradduck, 59, of Beech Avenue, Chartham, all pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud and appeared at Canterbury Crown Court on Friday (January 24, 2025) for sentencing.
All were handed suspended sentences, with Regan and Hamilton sentenced to two years in prison suspended for two years while Cradduck received 21 months also suspended for two years.
They have also been ordered to complete 200 hours of community service and compensation of £32,500 has been awarded so far and further payments are to be decided at future hearings.
The offences occurred between February 2016 and November 2018, with more than two million miles removed from 23 high mileage vehicles and were purchased by 22 unsuspecting customers.
The trio were discovered when the vehicles began breaking down. A van was purchased and did not make the journey home to North Yorkshire, and when the customer called the dealer they were threatened with physical violence.
Kent Trading Standards launched Operation Blackboard with the help of the National Trading Standards (NTS) Tri Region Investigation Team.
They requested information back from car auction houses that linked vehicles with trading names where the buy and sell mileages were not adding up.
Seized CCTV footage from the premises in Sandwich showed Cradduck tampering with dashboards and plugging in his laptop as he removed more than 100,000 miles from 10 of the vehicles.
The largest drop in mileage was 163,000 miles from one vehicle.
CCTV, fake logbooks, MOT certificates and ‘ringing’ kits – which remove the chassis number and create new number plates for a vehicle – were all seized following a warrant for the Old Boatyard in Sandwich.
Kent Police then helped in the investigation by examining vehicles and extracting data to show the true mileage.
As well as cars they sold, following a paper trail of phone, email and bank accounts, Trading Standards also found Cradduck was dealing with requests from people who wanted to clock their lease vehicles for £50 a time so they would avoid extra fees.
In his own BMW it was also found that he had installed a ‘cam blocker’ to stop miles being added.
In total, the operation found more than 200 vehicles had been handled by the group.
KCC’s cabinet member for community and regulatory services, Clair Bell, said: ‘The Trading Standards’ team do not commit to an investigation of this nature lightly, but they did so based on the harm that was being caused in this case.
‘This group were allowing people to drive away in potentially dangerous cars and vans, completely in the dark about their vehicle’s history. The new owners took a financial hit, unknowingly paying too much to begin with and many then having huge repair bills on top.
‘The offenders’ actions also undermine trust in the used vehicle market.
‘I commend the team for their extensive investigation into a complex web of criminality and deception, requiring significant endurance as they pieced together a shocking picture of systematic mileage adjustment on an industrial scale.
‘The outcome represents a significant victory in the fight against organised crime and fraudulent trading practices and I hope acts as a warning to others.’
Clive Phillips, operations manager for complex investigations at Kent Trading Standards, added: ‘This successful prosecution is a testament to the dedication and hard work of the Trading Standards team.
‘We are committed to protecting consumers and legitimate businesses, ensuring that those who engage in fraudulent activities are brought to justice.
‘The successful prosecution of the defendants in Operation Blackboard highlights the importance of vigilance and thorough investigation in combating fraud.
‘Kent County Council remains dedicated to safeguarding the public from deceptive practices and will continue to work tirelessly to uphold the law.’
