Gang targeted Elgin car dealership
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A car thief and his one-time girlfriend have appeared in court after three vehicles worth more than £64,000 were stolen from a dealership in Elgin.
Darren Malone was part of a gang from Lothian which targeted Hawco Volkswagen during the evening of January 14, 2021.
The 27-year-old, who is currently serving a 610-day sentence for another offence, appeared by video link at Inverness Sheriff Court earlier today.
He admitted breaking into the Hawco showroom on the Wards along with others and stealing a VW T-Roc, a VW Golf and an Audi A3, with a total value of £64,425.
The court was told that only the T-Roc has since been recovered by the police.
After the gang's driver pulled out at the last minute, Malone recruited his new girlfriend, Stephanie Lee, to take them north to Moray.
Lee, a 32-year-old university graduate, appeared at court in person today.
Her solicitor, Paul Dunn, said: "She has no previous convictions and was only in a brief relationship with Malone.
"Her role was relatively minor and she had no idea initially that she was becoming involved in an unlawful enterprise.
"But she then realised that something unlawful was to take place and she failed to take the opportunity to back out. So she is art and part responsible."
Mr Dunn added that his client had made no profit from the enterprise.
The gang were caught after CCTV footage from Hawco matched up with footage recorded at an Edinburgh filling station, where they had stopped earlier for petrol.
Malone was sentenced to two more years in prison with immediate effect.
Lee, of Ferry Gait, Edinburgh, sat wiping away tears in the dock as Sheriff Gary Aitken deferred sentence on her until July 25 for a background report.
