Moment thief who sold £100k worth of cars to undercover cops tries to sell vehicle to police officer
Hapless criminals sold stolen cars to cops who were tracking them for six months
A PAIR of hapless thieves stole top-of-the-range cars worth more than £100,000 from driveways - and sold them to undercover police.
Dean Cronin, 41, and Daniel Gordon, 28, headed a criminal network targeting luxury cars parked outside people's homes.
Undercover police footage shows Cronin bragging about a car in his fleet as he says: "Wait until you jump in this f****** thing, you'll have the experience of your lifetime".
Cronin and Gordon, both of Cardiff, were unaware they were being tracked by Welsh police for six months and were stung after selling officers the stolen vehicles.
The vehicles, worth £110,000, were sold to police for just under £5,400 - including a two-year-old Mercedes worth £31,000 for just £1,200.
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They burgled houses for the car keys inside before driving off with the vehicles while the owners were sleeping upstairs, Cardiff Crown Court heard.
Cronin and Gordon then sold the cars to officers from South Wales Police on seven occasions between June and November last year.
The pair pleaded guilty to charges of conspiring to handle stolen goods.
Cronin was jailed for three-and-a-half years and Gordon sentenced to 20 months at Cardiff Crown Court.
Detective Inspector Dean Taylor said later: "Cronin and Gordon headed up an organised crime group which was behind a relentless campaign of crimes across the region.
"They created the market for stolen vehicles and in doing so inflicted misery and the trauma of being the victim of a burglary upon lots of people."
South Wales Police and Crime Commissioner Alun Michael said: "This case demonstrates the lengths that police officers go to in order to tackle crime and bring offenders to justice.
"The officers were relentless in their pursuit of these criminals and I commend their actions on behalf of the victims."