Thirteen people were arrested and 18 vehicles with a total value of £185,000 were seized during a three-week police campaign targeting suspected vehicle-related crime in Tredegar, Ebbw Vale, Abertillery and Brynmawr.
Operation Athena details
Operation Athena ran from Tuesday, September 15 and saw officers seize vehicles including Range Rovers, Nissans and a Seat Leon. The force also carried out 13 arrests, with suspected offences including dangerous driving, driving without insurance and failing to stop.
Among those arrested was David Brean, of Cendl Terrace, Cwm. During Operation Athena, officers received a report of a man driving a silver Kia Picanto erratically on Marine Street, Cwm.
Arrest and court appearance
Brean, 40, was subsequently pulled over and charged with failing to provide a specimen for analysis. He is due to appear at Newport Magistrates' Court on Friday, October 16.
Sergeant Marc Porter, from Gwent Police's neighbourhood team in Blaenau Gwent, who led Operation Athena, said: "Our three-week targeted initiative supported the existing work running in the Blaenau Gwent area aimed at tackling vehicle crime and suspected offenders in collaboration with our roads policing unit.
Police commitment and public appeal
"We hope these latest arrests and vehicle seizures demonstrate our continued commitment to keeping our communities safe."
"By acting on intelligence and carrying out targeted patrols, we have been able to disrupt suspected criminal activity, make arrests and remove vehicles from our roads."
"Just as importantly, we work closely with our communities to help prevent crime before it happens with a clear objective of denying those suspected of criminality the opportunity to use our roads."
Anyone with concerns about vehicle-related crime in their communities, or with possible information that may help police identify those responsible, is asked to get in touch by calling 101 or sending a direct message to Gwent Police's Facebook or X social media accounts. Alternatively, Crimestoppers can be called anonymously on 0800 555 111. In an emergency, always dial 999.
