Thieves broke into Kalon Andrews' panel beating business and stole several luxury vehicles, including his prized classic ute.

A group of organised thieves who stole classic cars from a panel beaters have parallels to a Hollywood blockbuster. Blair Ensor reports.

Kalon Andrews' 1972 Mazda Rotary ute was his pride and joy.

He'd spent 13 years and tens of thousands of dollars restoring the vehicle – splashing out on new mags and a high-spec engine – and it was nearly roadworthy.

On August 10, Andrews, 32, planned to relocate the ute from his central Christchurch panel beaters, Andrews and Gilmore Collision Centre, to a new Wigram base.

However, as he was driving to the Welles St workshop a staff member called him with bad news.

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Thieves had cut the lock to a roller door at the premises and stolen four vehicles – a 1965 Ford Thunderbird, a BMW Z4, a quad bike and his prized ute.

"There were a lot of swear words," he says.

Police had several weeks earlier begun an investigation into a growing number of car thefts from businesses in the city, including car yards, a car groomers and a garage.

Supplied A Ford Thunderbird is driven through Christchurch shortly after it was stolen from a panel beaters. Police allege the white Subaru following close behind was involved in the burglary.

They suspected many of the stolen cars were being "rebirthed".

Rebirthing is where vehicles are stripped of identifying details and fitted with legitimate licence plates and VIN numbers, usually obtained from wrecks of the same make and model. They're often given a fresh paint job to further hide the fact they're stolen.

According to police, groups that rebirth cars are often highly organised and have skilled members able to rework the vehicles to a professional standard. The cars have a market in the street racing and boy racer community.

Each year thousands of vehicles are stolen in Christchurch alone, many more nationwide. Hundreds are never recovered. Police suspect many of them are rebirthed and sold to unsuspecting buyers.

NZ POLICE Kalon Andrews' 1972 Mazda Rotary ute is towed from his panel beaters in Christchurch by car thieves.

The planned burglary at Andrews and Gilmore earned the investigation the name Operation Eleanor.

Eleanor was the name of the 1967 Shelby Mustang car central to the 2000 film Gone in 60 Seconds which featured a gang of organised thieves who stole dozens of luxury cars for a crime boss.

Detectives investigating the theft at the panel beaters obtained security footage from businesses nearby which showed a group of men gathered on Colombo St about 2am on August 10. The burglary occurred soon afterwards.

Iain McGregor A group of organised car thieves broke into Kalon Andrews' Christchurch panel beaters and stole several cars.

Some of the men arrived in a white Subaru WRX, which police later identified as a car stolen from a Riccarton car park on July 11. The vehicle was fitted with false licence plates. Police allege the group broke into Andrews and Gilmore and stole the Ford Thunderbird and BMW. Security footage shows the vehicles being driven away followed by the white Subaru.

An hour and a half later, police allege, the group returned in two different cars – a blue Nissan Skyline towing a trailer and a grey Subaru Legacy. Both were stolen and fitted with false number plates. The Mazda ute and a quad bike were loaded onto the trailer.

Andrews was determined to catch those responsible. He posted on Facebook about the burglary – sharing photos of the vehicles stolen from his workshop and appealing for sightings. He was prepared to pay a $5000 reward if his ute was returned intact. Members of the car community responded with information, which he passed to the police.

Supplied. Kalon Andrews' 1972 Mazda Rotary ute was dumped in a central Christchurch street five days after the burglary. It was missing expensive parts including the engine and mag wheels.

Five days after the burglary, Andrews received a tip his ute was dumped on Bangor St in central Christchurch. It had been stripped of valuable parts, including the engine and mag wheels.

"I was relieved that it wasn't chopped up, but gutted to see how it'd been treated," he says.

The investigation into the Andrews and Gilmore burglary was gaining momentum and the police had several suspects.

On September 13, detectives searched a Belfast storage unit. They found a disassembled 1965 Pontiac Laurentian worth $80,000 that was stolen from a non-car related business in Middleton, Christchurch, on July 7, and a quad bike taken from a Yaldhurst farm machinery supplier on July 22 or 23.

Supplied Police raided a property in the Christchurch suburb of Redwood and found several stolen cars.

That same day investigators raided a property in Uxbridge St, Redwood, where they found 10 vehicles – seven of which were later confirmed as rebirthed stolen cars.

The rebirthed vehicles, which included the Nissan and Subarus used in the burglary at Andrews and Gilmores, had false number plates or identification tags and their appearances had been changed either through altering the colour or replacing parts like wheels and spoilers. Some had been pulled over by police previously, but officers hadn't realised they were revamped stolen vehicles.

Police also found equipment, including welders, air compressors and paint guns used for dismantling and re-identifying cars. They allege the property was being used as a "chop shop".

Three men were arrested after the police searches. They have been charged with being part of an organised criminal group and an array of other offences, including burglary and car theft.

Police allege the men stole at least a dozen vehicles with a combined value of $400,000. They believe some of them were used to commit other crimes.

Andrews is happy the police operation has been successful. However, as his ute wasn't insured, he's out of pocket tens of thousands of dollars. The restoration is back to square one.

The Ford Thunderbird and BMW were insured. The Ford was found without its original engine meaning it was no longer considered collectable. The BMW was intact but missing its keys.

Detective Sergeant Ross Tarawhiti says police believe there are several similar groups stealing cars in Christchurch. Inquiries are ongoing.

He urged people to be vigilant when buying cars from unlicensed sellers, particularly those trading online.

Anyone with information can contact Christchurch police on (03) 3637400 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.