London police seize 90 luxury cars including £3.7m Ferrari in record-breaking crackdown

Record-breaking seizure

London's Metropolitan Police seized 90 vehicles worth more than £8 million (€9.3 million) during a weekend crackdown on uninsured, anti-social and dangerous driving in some of the capital's wealthiest districts. The operation, conducted jointly with the Motor Insurers' Bureau, ran from Friday 7 August to Sunday 9 August across Kensington, Chelsea and Hyde Park. Police said both the number and total value of vehicles confiscated were the highest in the five-year history of the operation.

The standout seizure was a Ferrari Monza SP2 valued at £3.7 million (approximately €4.2 million), one of only 499 examples produced by the Italian manufacturer. The Dubai-registered supercar had been in the United Kingdom for just one day when officers stopped it. The driver held only a provisional licence, had no insurance, and had been behind the wheel for less than half an hour. A comparable Monza SP2 sold at auction earlier this year for nearly $5 million. The Monza SP2 is a modern interpretation of the 1950s racing barchettas, has no windscreen windows, and uses a system Ferrari calls the Virtual Wind Shield to channel airflow over occupants' heads. Among known owners of the model are chef Gordon Ramsay and former footballer Zlatan Ibrahimović.

Officer drives Ferrari to the pound

Instead of loading the sports car onto a flatbed truck, as is standard practice for seized vehicles, a Metropolitan Police officer wearing sunglasses drove the open-top Ferrari through Mayfair and Marble Arch to the police pound, escorted by patrol vehicles and the empty flatbed truck. Footage of the scene circulated on social media, where users joked it was the "best day" of the officer's career. One commenter wrote that the officer would go home "the happiest man in the world."

Arrests and additional seizures

Vehicle stops during the operation produced four arrests. A man found in a Mercedes GLC with 19 bank cards issued in other people's names and more than £2,500 in cash was arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods and money laundering. A second man, stopped for driving without insurance, was arrested on suspicion of possession of drugs with intent to supply; according to Tages Anzeiger, police found £5,500 in cash on him. Two further arrests were made, one for using words or behaviour likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress, and one on suspicion of an immigration offence.

Local complaints and police response

Special Chief Inspector Geoff Tatman, who led the operation, said residents had repeatedly complained about dangerous driving and vehicle modifications causing nuisance in the area.

“We regularly hear from local people who are fed up with people driving cars dangerously in the area, or with modifications which make them a nuisance to those who live nearby.”

Fifteen of the 90 vehicles were seized under new powers that allow police to confiscate a car immediately when it is used in an anti-social manner, without first issuing a warning. Angus Eaton, chief executive of the Motor Insurers' Bureau, said the operation showed that the rules apply to all motorists regardless of the value of the vehicle they choose to drive.