Four thieves who set up a secret chop shop to strip down the vehicles they had stolen have been jailed.

The gang moved in to a disused warehouse in Bruce Grove, Wickford, and used it to dismantle four Ford Transits they stole in Thurrock.

They were foiled when satelite technology led police to the site after the stole a van from Witham which was fitted with an advanced tracking system.

The following morning, police went to the warehouse and found two members of the gang stripping the stolen van and the remains of four other vehicles.

Danny Garwood, 30, of Josling Close, Grays, Warren Hampshire, 20, of Laird Avenue, Grays, Joe Higgs, 22, of Stephenson Road, Tilbury, and Ryan Lee, 26, of Russell Road, Tilbury, all admitted conspiracy to steal a vehicle during an appearance at Basildon Crown Court.

Garwood was jailed for 30 months, Lee was jailed for to 18 months, Higgs was handed a ten month sentence and Hampshire was sentenced to 10 months detention at a young offender institution.

The court heard that the four men, all unemployed mechanics, stole three Transit vans and a Transit pick-up in Grays between September 29 and October 1, 2013.

The vehicles, all worth around £10,000, were taken from Bridge Road, Whitehall Lane, Arthur Road and High View Avenue.

 They were all forced open at night and driven straight to the warehouse at Wickford.

Three of the men then drove to Witham in the early hours of October 3, 2013 and forced open a door of a Transit van parked in Hemmingway Road.

The driver discovered the theft at 5.30am and phoned his boss at Brentwood, who checked the tracking system.

It showed that the van was stolen at 4.01am and arrived at the unit in Bruce Grove 32 minutes later.

Dc Chris Bailey of Grays CID who led the investigation, said: "This was a long and complex case because the four men originally pleaded not guilty and denied any involvement. But because the last vehicle stolen had the sophisticated tracking system which took us straight to the warehouse and the stolen vans we were able to link the men to all the offences.

"Faced with the evidence in court they entered guilty pleas and the judge gave them all custodial sentences. These thieves preyed on tradesmen and businesses who used the vehicles every day but thanks to GPS technology they are now behind bars."