A North London man faces a hefty £900,000 repayment for smuggling stolen tractors to Bulgaria
North London: So, there’s this guy named Hristo Chenchev, right? He was part of a gang that stole tractors in Oxfordshire. Now, he’s got to cough up nearly £900,000 because he got caught trying to smuggle those tractors to Bulgaria. Can you believe it?
Chenchev, who’s 48 and lives in Enfield, was a key player in this whole operation. They were loading up stolen tractors onto lorries and shipping them off to Eastern Europe. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges and got a two-year suspended sentence back in March.
Thames Valley Police were onto him through something called Operation Jack Knife. They caught him red-handed when they got reports about people loading stolen tractors. Turns out, this gang was busy exporting stolen tractors to Bulgaria between April and May 2020.
Lucy Flynn, a senior investigator, was pretty pleased with the outcome. She said it’s great that Chenchev has to pay back such a big amount. The thefts really hurt local businesses and communities in Oxfordshire.
She also warned that if you get involved in this kind of crime, you’ll face serious consequences, not just in court but also financially. It’s a tough lesson for him!
