DETECTIVES hunting a gang of car thieves dubbed the “Ice Bandits” have arrested three men after carrying out dawn raids in Bolton.

Police swooped on addresses in Kearsley yesterday morning and arrested three men, aged 27, 28 and 25, on suspicion of conspiracy to steal vehicles.

Officers from Bolton’s Proactive Vehicle Crime Unit searched houses in Tigg Fold Road, Beech Avenue and Church Road as part of Operation Groundhog.

The raids were carried out as part of a nine-month investigation into the theft of dozens of cars in Bolton.

The thefts were linked to a gang who persistently targeted cars whose owners leave them unattended with the engines running to warm them up in the cold weather.

They have also stolen cars left unattended during the warmer months.

Since January, it is believed the Ice Bandits have been responsible for the theft of more than 40 cars worth more than £500,000.

The thefts have been carried out throughout Bolton and the North-west, with the crimes being reported as far afield as Leeds.

Each time they strike, the offenders wait for the victim to leave the car running but unattended, often as they go into a shop to use a cash point or to go back into their homes.

They then steal the car and drive it a short distance where they park it and leave it for several hours. This is to determine whether the car has a tracking device fitted.

If nobody comes to recover the car, they return and fit false plates before selling it.

The stolen cars often go on to be used in further violent crime.

The three men were held in custody for questioning last night.