A THIRD man has admitted being part of a network of car thieves dubbed the “ice bandits”.

The gang targeted cars that had been left unattended by their owners with the engines running, especially during bouts of cold weather.

David Jones, aged 26, of Church Road, Kearsley, yesterday pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal motor vehicles when he appeared at Bolton Crown Court, after previously denying the charge.

John Paul Perritt, aged 29, of Beech Avenue, Kearsley, and Trevor Jones, aged 27, of Wren Close, Farnworth, pleaded guilty to the same charge at an earlier hearing.

The men have admitted stealing up to 15 vehicles between January and August last year.

Police launched Operation Groundhog to catch the gang, who are now facing lengthy jail sentences.

The case has now been adjourned until June 29, when the men are due to be sentenced.

Granting the men bail, Judge Martin Allweis said: “As you will know, a custodial sentence is extremely likely.

“If you attempt to disappear or make yourselves scarce, you might get away for a short time, but at some point you will be found and you will only make matters worse.”

Police swooped on addresses in Kearsley in November last year and arrested the men.

Officers from Bolton’s Proactive Vehicle Crime Unit searched houses in Tig Fold Road, Beech Avenue and Church Road as part of the operation.

The raids were carried out as part of a nine-month investigation into the theft of cars in Bolton.

Police investigations revealed that the thieves would wait for their victim to leave their car unattended with the engine running, often as they went into a shop to use a cash point or went back into their homes.

They would then steal the car, drive it for a short distance, park it and leave it for several hours to determine whether it had a tracking device fitted.

If nobody came to recover the car, they would return and fit false plates before selling it.

The defendants admitted stealing car number plates as part of the conspiracy.

Perritt also pleaded guilty to four counts of driving while disqualified and one count of dangerous driving, while Jones admitted four counts of driving while disqualified.