ESSEX Police's Stolen Vehicle Intelligence Unit has tracked down and returned cars belonging to two Premier League footballers.

The stolen Ferrari and Range Rover Sport were destined to be shipped out in containers to Dubai from the London Gateway Port in Thurrock.

They are among the 517 vehicles or parts of vehicles – with a combined value of more than £16m – that the unit have recovered so far in 2023.

The footballers, who have more than 100 international caps between them, had their cars stolen in neighbouring counties.

The SVIU's PC Paul Gerrish, PC Phil Pentelow and analyst Hannah Gerrish located the vehicles in the shipping containers.

Once a car is taken, thieves may look to quickly sell it on – even for way under the market value – strip it for parts, or ship either the whole car or parts of the car to areas including the Middle East and Africa.

There, the vehicles can be sold for two or three times more than they would cost in the UK.

Thieves or handlers of the stolen vehicles may also obtain false or cloned identities, then sell the vehicles on to unsuspecting members of the public in the UK or distribute them to other criminals.

This summer Essex Police launched Operation Ignition, which brings together the SVIU, Roads Policing and investigators to dismantle the criminal gangs behind the thefts.

The SVIU have retuned vehicles to hundreds of victims and deal with everything from family saloons to supercars.

PC Paul Gerrish said one the best parts of the job is returning a vehicle to someone who didn't expect to see it again.

"Every stolen car is important to us, and we work as hard as we can to get them back to their owners. When you phone someone up and tell them we've got their car with their kids' car seats and the pushchair in the back, or other personal items, it's hugely satisfying.

"We are creating a hostile environment for car thieves. We know what to look for and we know how and where they operate."

One of the footballers came to the team's base to be reunited with his car and praised the SVIU's work.

PC Phil Pentelow and PC Paul Gerrish of the SVIU.

PC Phil Pentelow said: "He was genuinely thankful and taken aback by the lengths we had gone to. His car was clearly very dear to him, and he was very impressed with the service he'd had from the police.

"Even though he plays for one of my team's biggest rivals, he was a nice guy and down-to-earth. It was good to help him."

If you're a car owner concerned about the security of your vehicle, the team recommend you learn about your car's vulnerabilities by looking at videos online, check on the website Secured by Design to find recommended safety devices for your car, and consider investing in a Disklok.

However, they say the biggest vulnerability is people leaving their cars unlocked. "Double lock it and check it," saidPV Pentelow. "We still see CCTV where people's cars aren't locked."