Chop shop busted inside stone fabrication company in New Jersey: police
FAIRFIELD, New Jersey (WABC) -- Police made a shocking discovery inside a stone fabrication company in New Jersey -- authorities say a tip from a cleaning staff member led them to bust a suspected chop shop that was reselling car parts in New Jersey.
Officers say they found two stripped SUVs with their Vehicle Identification Numbers defaced at the shop on Daniel Road East in Fairfield.
They located several different vehicles and parts which appeared to be heading to the black market for sale.
At least two of the vehicles had been stolen out of New York City.
All of the vehicles are Honda CRVs. They became a popular car to steal following an online video posted that taught techniques on stealing the vehicle.
"It could almost be your textbook type chop shop scenario," said Stacy Chiarolanza, the public information officer of the Fairfield Police Department.
Three people were taken into custody when police raided the location over the weekend.
At this point, the owner of the stone warehouse is not a suspect. However, authorities say it appears that some employees were involved.
Cops were told they needed to investigate quickly because the cars and parts would be removed by 6 a.m. When they moved in, they said there was little doubt a chop shop was operating inside the warehouse.
"There were several cars, just the shells of the cars, nothing, literally nothing in them in the parking lot covered in tarps. There was another vehicle inside the building itself completely stripped down. There was an engine line, there was an exhaust pipeline," Chiarolanza said. "You name it, how you would expect to see a chop shop and that's exactly what this looked like."
One suspect turned himself in to police Tuesday morning and is now facing charges.
Authorities are talking to witnesses to get more information on how long the alleged chop shop has been operating.
Police are now trying to determine if this was part of a larger organization.
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