A police-led stakeout of waste disposal sites to catch metal thieves dealt with five drivers for scrap metal offences - and detected over 140 other offences such as benefit fraud, mechanical defects and driving without a seatbelt.
Operation Scandium saw Police Scotland and British Transport Police (BTP) team up with the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Scottish Fire and Rescue, Scottish Power, BT, HM Revenue and Customs, the Scottish Business Resilience Centre and Edinburgh Council to carry out checks at Seafield and Newbridge.
Over the two days of activity last Monday and today, 258 vehicles were stopped and there were 147 offences dealt with in an effort to raise awareness of the new scrap metal laws in the Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015.
Five drivers were dealt with by BTP for not having a licence to carry scrap metal, and there were a further 20 benefit fraud offences dealt with by the council.
Five vehicles were seized, for no insurance and no driving licence.
Of 29 serious mechanical vehicle defects, nine were so bad that the vehicles were prohibited from continuing their journeys. Other offences included vehicles being overweight, using red diesel, having no MOT, and driving without wearing a seatbelt.
Temporary Superintendent Fraser Candlish, of Police Scotland's Road Policing Unit, said: "Whilst we want to educate those who use scrap metal dealers of the changes coming into force, particularly around cashless transactions, we are also using our partnership activity to disrupt those using the road network to commit crime.
"Metal theft strikes right at the heart of communities, whether it is phone cabling stolen, lead removed from church roofs or catalytic converters taken from vehicles. Once metal is stolen, it has to be transported and disposed of somewhere. By denying criminals the use of our roads, we can keep our routes and our neighbourhoods safe."
Justice Secretary Michael Matheson said: "We are proud to have delivered on our promise to bring in tougher rules to tackle metal theft with the Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act.
"Measures like a ban on cash payments, alongside enforcement action from partners, will make it harder for thieves to commit this thoughtless crime."
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