MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Police say they were able to put a Whitehaven chop shop out of business after a man spotted his stolen pickup truck along East Shelby Drive Tuesday.
Wednesday, the owner of the house in the 2100 block of East Shelby Drive was cleaning up the property after several people he said were using the place for storage were arrested.
Tyrone Holloway, who works at 24/7 Tires & Towing next door, said he wasn’t aware of any illegal activity at the house but, in January, told the occupants to vacate the premises.
“Now I’ve got to put them out,” said Holloway.
Police said 30-year-old Dakota Smith, 45-year-old Aubrey Blackwood, and 43-year-old Norna Harris were all taken into custody after they executed a search warrant and found a vehicle in various states of disrepair. They also found several different vehicle parts and engine parts that had already been stripped off other vehicles.
Officers were also able to identify a silver Infiniti SUV that was missing several parts, a 2005 Chevrolet 2500 and a 1997 Chevrolet GC3.
Police said the vehicles were stolen over the last two months, and the two Chevys were taken from the same business in Northeast Memphis.
Blackwood, Smith, and Harris are all facing three counts of theft of property and violation of the chop shop law. Harris and Blackwood are also accused of altering vehicle serial numbers.
All three are scheduled to be arraigned on Thursday. A fourth person on the property was also detained.
