Re "Van" locations.
Do LE have "ANPR" (Automatic number-plate recognition) in the US?
ANPR devices work by scanning vehicle registrations and checking them against information stored in databases, including the Police National Computer to identify vehicles of interest to the police, such as stolen cars, those involved in crimes or vulnerable missing persons.
All police forces have real-time access to ANPR camera data through direct links to the National ANPR Data Centre.[3] Effectively, the police (and the security services) can track any car (technically any number plate) around the country in close to real time.[6]
Automatic number-plate recognition in the United Kingdom - Wikipedia
Fundamentally. Police can enter a registration into the data base and if it has been picked up by ANPR camera anywhere in the country they can track it's movements from the first to it's last capture, in real time or subsequently. If a subjects vehicle travels from point A to point B and the suspect says they were not there the data will prove otherwise, the time and date, unless the subject reports the car stolen (In person) before the capture and on or around the capture and they can not geographically (distance) possibly be in two places at once. Which may suggest cooperation, especially for an illegal or deceitful purpose.
Moo