Ten men and two women, aged between 22 and 43, were arrested on Sunday for criminal association, qualified theft, vehicle theft, fraud, forgery of documents, forgery of technical notes, and drug trafficking, in the districts of Porto and Braga.

The National Republican Guard (GNR) reported that the arrests took place as part of an investigation into the theft and dismantling of vehicles, which had been going on for around a year.

The suspects allegedly stole "more than 100 vehicles, with an estimated total value of 3,000,000 euros".

After police and criminal investigation, the GNR managed to recover 27 stolen vehicles, which were returned to their rightful owners.