Man who made number plates for cars involved in attempted murder jailed

A man who made thousands of number plates to sell to criminals to use on cars involved in crimes ranging from attempted murder to burglaries has been jailed for more than three years.

Daniel Day, 32, ran the operation from his house in Coronation Road in Tipton, where he had the equipment to make the cloned plates which he charged £30 a set for.

His movements came to light during another investigation into a gang who were using stolen cars to commit vehicle crime in the Black Country.

The gang ordered 94 sets of cloned plates from him in one year.

Day's ‘customers’ would steal cars, then get him to make number plates that matched the make and model while also disguising the cars true identity.

They included logos of genuine dealerships.

Officers found that one set of plates was requested, produced and then attached to a cloned car – all within the space of 18 minutes.

A surveillance operation revealed how Day, who was known in the underworld as ‘Skell’, would meet with criminal associates in alley ways and disused car parks, travelling by motorbike and hiding the plates in his jacket.

Day’s number plates were used on vehicles involved in more than 140 crimes including:

• An armed robbery at a post office in Dudley• A shooting in Wolverhampton• Multiple car key burglaries

Police swooped on his house in May last year. He fled through the back garden, and straight into the hands of officers.

In his pocket at the time was his ‘business’ phone which he used to make the deals. Plate-making equipment and the software used was also found at the property. Day was using a laptop previously owned by a legitimate number plate-making business which closed down.

Examination of his phone showed that 420 sets of number plates were requested during an eight-week period. It’s believed 7,000 were provided by him over the period.

Day went on to admit perverting the course of justice and possessing criminal property and was jailed at Wolverhampton Crown Court yesterday (Monday) for three years and four months.

DC Kelly Whyte, of our Major Crime Proactive Team, said: “This was organised crime on an industrial scale. Day had built a reputation as someone who could supply criminals with number plates to disguise their identities and frustrate police, and he could do it incredibly quickly.

"It was run like a commercial enterprise.“We estimate that he made more than £200,000 from this enterprise and in one week alone he received 67 requests.

“He has helped criminals involved in a whole host of crimes, driving away from petrol stations without paying for fuel up to attempted murder.

“He was so trusted and reliable, that we would often find his details in the phones of criminals he had had helped when we prosecuted them for other crimes.

“Every one of the crimes he helped make happen will have had a victim, and it’s impossible to gauge the full extent on the impact his business had on them.

“His conviction shows our determination to take on organised criminals and put them behind bars to protect the public."