Gangs Stealing Agricultural Machinery in UK Suspected to Sell to Russia: Increase in Thefts by 300%

According to “Politico”, gangs specializing in stealing agricultural machinery have become active in Great Britain. According to preliminary information, all the stolen equipment is being sent to Eastern Europe. It is not excluded that after the equipment has arrived in Eastern Europe, it is purchased by representatives of the Russian authorities, who can no longer legally purchase agricultural equipment in Europe.

The British police have confirmed that the version that the equipment stolen in Great Britain later goes to Russia has not yet been fully proven, but investigators have access to information that leads them to reasonably believe that the cases of theft of specialized equipment are orders from Russia.

In the first quarter of 2023 alone, the amount of agricultural machinery stolen in England and Wales increased by 300%. Thieves also target construction equipment, such as excavators and expensive GPS devices that allow farmers to take care of their fields more efficiently.

On the black market, 8 to 10 thousand euros are paid for such equipment per unit.

It should be recalled that recently the Russian airline “Aeroflot” already tried to bypass the sanctions and restore the software of the “Airbus A350”. In order to implement this, Russia was helped by a “friendly” country.