Con artists operating on the M53 at Hooton were among three teams arrested by police on North West motorways this week.
Two weeks after The Chronicle reported that foreign crooks were targeting motorists on roads including the M56 and the M6, and concocting sob stories in exchange for cash and valuables, arrests have been made as part of a national police crackdown.
Operation Trivium sees officers from Romania and Lithuania plus Dutch Police and Europol joining UK counterparts to help with vehicle stops, translating for suspects and checking their home country’s police systems to verify details supplied by foreign nationals.
As a result, arrests have been made on motorways following reported incidents that saw drivers flagging down innocent motorists to ask for cash for fuel in exchange for gold rings.
Running out of petrol and pretending to have broken down were some of the other bogus tales they told to dupe drivers into handing over cash.
Greater Manchester Police Traffic tweeted today: 'The jewellery sellers have been at it again! The good news is, two teams have been arrested for fraud."
North West Motorway Police later tweeted: "Third team of jewellery sellers has been stopped on the M53 at J6."
One scam was featured on BBC Radio Five Live after John Doyle, from Cheshire, phoned the show to highlight the issue, which you can watch below.
Have you been the victim of a motorway scam? Tell us about your experience in the comments below.
