Man ordered to pay back over £870,000 for Oxfordshire tractor theft
48 year old Hristo Chenchev pleaded guilty to concealing, transferring and removing machines over a three month period.
Last updated 10th Jan 2025
A man's been ordered to pay back over £870,000 for his part in a tractor theft operation in Oxfordshire.
48 year old Hristo Chenchev pleaded guilty to concealing, transferring and removing machines over a three month period.
It came to light through investigations into Operation Jack Knife.
He was convicted at Oxford Crown Court in March last year, after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to conceal, disguise, convert, transfer and remove from England and Wales criminal property.
He was then subject of a Proceeds of Crime Act investigation and, on Christmas Eve 2024, was ordered at Oxford Crown Court to pay a total of £873,852.48 over a three month period.
Operation Jack Knife
As part of Operation Jack Knife, Chenchev was found to be involved with a local Oxfordshire crime group who stole tractors from the Oxfordshire area and removed them from the UK.
He was arrested at the scene of the crime where officers from Thames Valley Police had been called to reports that persons were attempting to load stolen tractors onto the back of foreign lorries.
Between 1 April and 26 May 2020, the group arranged for the onward exportation and sale of those tractors to Bulgaria, in which Chenchev played the leading part and financially benefitted from these crimes.
Senior Financial Investigator Lucy Flynn, of the North Asset Recovery Team, said: “I am pleased that Chenchev has been ordered to pay back this substantial amount of money.
“The group which he conspired with, was responsible for the theft of a large number of high value tractors in the Oxfordshire area and local rural communities and their businesses suffered a loss due to the thefts”
“This case shows that if you involve yourself in this sort of criminality you can expect to not only be prosecuted, but also that you will have to pay back a significant amount of money.”