Four men from Yorkshire have been arrested by Cheshire Police following a number of thefts from HGVs.

Following information from Staffordshire Police that there had been thefts at Stafford Services, Cheshire Police and the North West Motorway Group identified a suspect vehicle that was headed north on the M6.

Officers from Cheshire Roads and Crime Unit located and intercepted the car on the M6 Northbound.

The four men aged 18, 24, 38 and 27 from the Leeds area were arrested on suspicion of attempted theft and going equipped. They have been released on conditional bail pending further enquiries.

Inspector Anton Sullivan said: "This was fantastic teamwork between ourselves the NWMPG and Staffordshire Police. I hope this sets hares racing among the criminal fraternity that we're out there, working together, hunting down those suspected of criminal activity.

"Our cross-border operations such as Op Crossbow highlight this work, but arrests like this prove that we are indeed out there 24/7 making life difficult for those suspected of crimes in our communities."

Sergeant Emily Sharp, of Staffordshire Police, added: "Because of our location, a lot of heavy goods vehicles stop overnight in Staffordshire. While the vast majority do so safely, we know that there are criminals who come into the area to target these vehicles.

"It can have devastating consequences to the haulage industry, so we are grateful for the support from Cheshire Police in arresting these suspects.

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"We will continue to work together to disrupt criminality and raise awareness of this type of crime."