More than 30 caravans, worth around £750,000, were found in the Costa Blanca by detectives investigating thefts across the UK.

Britons were among those who bought the caravans, unaware their bargains were stolen goods.

Detectives from Lancashire police spent three days at the sunshine resort - which is popular with expats - working with officers from the Guardia Civil and insurance investigators.

Det Sgt Simon Ingham, of Lancashire police's stolen vehicle squad, said: "Investigations into thefts of caravans from Lancashire led us to believe they had gone out of the country and were being sold in Benidorm.

"They are taken down to Spain and sold to go on a plot on one of the sites. Many of the people now living in them were quite shocked when they learned the truth."

Officers visited two large sites on the outskirts of Benidorm - including the 11 Euro-a-night Camping Villamar - and checked out 120 holiday homes. One in four had been stolen.

Of the 730 caravans stolen in the UK last year, 127 were from Lancashire. Hundreds of them are sent to the Costas to be sold on by organised gangs. Top-of-the range tourers can retail for up to £25,000 brand new and even more basic models can cost thousands of pounds.

DS Ingham added: "The gangs that steal the caravans tend to move around the country. Lancashire has quite a large caravan population and they are being stolen from driveways and storage sites.

"The gangs may come to Lancashire one year and then move on to another area."

Many caravan thefts take place in rural areas in the early hours of the morning.

Areas such as Whittingham, Whitestake and Warton have all been targeted. And thieves stole caravans from homes and sites in Croston, Brinscall, Whittle-le-Woods and Leyland in one week.

'Protect'

Earlier this year, the Lancashire Evening Post reported how milkmen and taxi drivers had been recruited by police to report any suspicious vehicles towing caravans.

Author David Moran, 67, of Brinscall near Chorley, had a £17,000 caravan stolen from a site near his home last year.

He was contacted by police following the raids in Spain but none of the caravans they found were his.

He said: "You treat a caravan like a second home, putting carpets in it and pictures on the wall.

"I did everything I could have done to protect the caravan but there was seven taken from the same site."

British insurers will now work with the Spanish authorities to bring the stolen vans home. Investigations are continuing to try to discover the identities of the thieves and trace the original owners of the stolen property.

Under Spanish law, police cannot seize the caravans, but court orders have been secured, meaning they cannot be sold on or moved off their sites until they are brought back to England.

It is estimated the total value of the stolen goods is around £750,000 but none of them had the correct paperwork or receipts.

Detectives in the stolen vehicle squad are continuing their work on the Costa Blanca with the Guardia Civil and will return to Benidorm later this year.

Lesley Coell, head of insurance and financial service for The Caravan Club, said: "We are concerned to hear about this latest development in Spain and our agents are working with the authorities on this investigation."

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