Hollis and Hagen are laughed off by CID when they provide a tipoff on an upcoming armed robbery at a casino, provided by former getaway driver Jerry Mulligan, after he is arrested for stealing a milk float. However, it comes back to haunt them when a casino is robbed overnight, with Hollis wasting no time in mentioning CID's indiscretion to a furious Burnside. He tasks Lennox and McCann, on attachment to CID, with tracking Mulligan down. He provides info on another raid, so Burnside leads an undercover team there to catch the gang in the act, but Mulligan is attacked and the gang make a breakaway, leaving Burnside to pick up the pieces.

The new CID team arrives at Sun Hill, led by the new station commander, Supt Tom Chandler. His pally attitude with the relief doesn't go down well, with the likes of Cryer, Smith and Meadows skeptical. Meadows feels the pressure of facing a disciplinary board hearing following the Beech scandal. New DI Alex Cullen is assigned to head the investigation of an apparently racially motivated harassment of a local family, along with cocky DC Paul Riley and hard-faced DS Debbie McAllister, after complainant Frank Griffiths says Meadows had history with Helen Freeley, whose sons are suspected of racially abusing Griffiths and his family. As facts become apparent, events take a dramatic turn. Meanwhile, new arrival DS Vik Singh dishes the dirt immediately by warning his new colleagues that McAllister is overcompensating for a recent promotion to DS, whilst telling them that Cullen in Chandler's pocket.

DS Vik Singh goes undercover to a 'car cruise', where he becomes involved with a well-organised car ringing gang led by Kevin North. Meanwhile, DC Mickey Webb tries to cultivate an unofficial 15-year old snout named Tyro Shaw, in the hope that he will grass up his father, Steve Shaw. Singh poses as a car thief, and is soon in with the gang, even gaining a meeting with North's boss - Jennifer Salter. As Webb gets frustrated by Shaw's dead-end leads, Singh pushes the boy too far about his involvement with the gang.

Tyro Shaw threatens to blow DS Singh's cover in the car-ringing gang, but is convinced otherwise. Singh seems to have impressed both Kevin North and his boss, Jennifer Salter, who seems quite taken with him. Salter tells Singh the gang is moving on soon, and he realises he must get the evidence in North's office. As Singh enters the office, Webb realises that Tyro Shaw has set them up, and Vik is abducted by North and Salter. Webb convinces Tyro to tell them where Vik was taken, and CID narrowly rescue him from being set alight.