A stolen caravan found in Bolton has now been returned to its rightful owners.
The caravan was one of three that were found when police raided an address on Hall Lane in Little Lever on Friday, June 16 this year.
Following investigations, officers established that one of them had been taken from North Wales on Sunday, March 5.
Jason Roberts, from Greater Manchester Police's Stolen Vehicle Examination Unit (SVEU), said: “We were delighted to return the caravan to its rightful owner, underlining our commitment to reunite stolen vehicles to those that they belong to.
“This was different from what we usually deal with but after some hard work and numerous phone calls, we managed to establish that the VIN number had been tampered with.
“The individuals that took the caravan had clearly gone to great lengths to ensure that its true identity could not be revealed, but thankfully we managed to get to the correct conclusion.”
He added: “After speaking with the owner, she was able to point out more identifying factors that would have made up in the interior compared to the standard, off-the-production line models.
“Details such as extra plug sockets that she had fitted, a microwave oven and a broken salad tray within the fridge, as well as many more.”
Several other factors about the stolen caravan helped led police to its rightful owners.
One of the main factors that led to the true identification of the caravan was the vehicle’s identification number had been altered, with the last two digits being changed from "66" to "88".
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Information on the Police National Computer also had a marker on the stolen caravan that stated there was a dent under the word "exquisite", which was consistent with a dent on the recovered caravan.
An examiner from the SVEU managed to get in touch with the caravan’s rightful owner, returning it to her after more than three months.
Anyone with any further information or concerns can call police on 101 or 999 in the event of an emergency.
Alternatively, witnesses can contact independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
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