these dumbarses got caught because they broke the intelligent criminal’s first rule of law-breaking: Break No More Than One Law At Any Given Time!
example: gonna drive about with a car load of illegally possessed firearms, then diligently obey EVERY law of the road whilst driving about, including valid license plate, valid insurance, and valid drivers license and proof of same ...
Start with:
Obey the Speed Limit.
Obey stop signs.
Use your turn signals.
Use your headlights.
Ensure all your lights are working.
Then, we get to the stuff you mentioned, rightly starting with valid license plates.
The idea is not to attract attention in the first place; don't give the cops an excuse to light you up.