Car stolen during coffee stop

A man who left his car motor running outside a Drouin milk bar returned to discover his car had been stolen on Thursday.

Baw Baw CIU detectives said the male left his Ford Ranger utility running at 6.30am while he went into a Main South Rd milk bar to get a coffee.

While he was out of the vehicle, a stolen Toyota Camry with two males parked beside the utility.

Detectives allege one of the men got out of the Camry and jumped into the Ford.

The Toyota had previously been stolen from Drouin earlier this month.

The utility was later recovered on Thursday night crashed into a ditch at Trafalgar.

The Toyota, and a quantity of tools from the utility, also was later recovered dumped in Drouin.

Detectives believe the thefts may be related to a number of other stolen car incidents in the area over recent weeks.