Police ‘inaction’ criticised after Range Rover theft
It’s an £80,000 car, if I walk into the post office and take 80 grand they would soon be looking for it. Theft victim
A SOLIHULL driver has condemned police after his prized Range Rover Sport was stolen from the front drive and ended up 1,000 miles away in Poland.
The 60-year-old, who asked not to be named, said the £80,000 vehicle was snatched after a shopping trip and was later taken abroad by ‘organised criminals’.
He criticised West Midlands Police for their handling of the case, claiming his contact with the force was “non existent” after he reported the vehicle stolen. Officers said no CCTV or witnesses had been identified.
The construction industry worker had taken his wife shopping in Shirley before returning home in the year-old vehicle on September 29.
At 9.15pm, he received a security alert on his phone, with a notification telling him to check his car.
“I looked out my front window and the car had vanished,” he said.
Despite having a car key sleeve that supposedly blocks signals,
crooks had managed to open up the Range Rover before making off without a sound. A day or so later, the victim had a call from a colleague informing him the contents of his boot had been found in neighbouring Dorridge. Items that included company branding had been dumped by the side of the road.
For a couple of days after the theft, he received alerts from his Range Rover tracking system.
“All of this has been reported to the police,” he said. “I kept getting bleeps on my phone to say it was sending out a signal.”
Eventually he was informed the Range Rover was emitting a signal from Poland, leaving him in the frustrating position of dealing with two separate police forces and foreign officers.
“I was told it had been recovered by Polish police,” he said. He eventually cut his losses and accepted an insurance payout.
He added that he was targeted by “organised” criminals and had been contacted by others with similar experiences.
“It’s all been one way,” he said. “I’ve given the police information but they have never once come back to me and told me what’s happening. It’s almost like it’s a personal item and insured so they are not bothered about it.
“It’s an £80,000 car, if I was to walk into the post office and take 80 grand they would soon be looking for it.”
The theft victim, who lives with his wife and has grown up children, said criminals were “lying in wait” and urged anybody to invest in an old fashion steering wheel lock or aftermarket tracker.
A West Midlands Police spokesman said: “The theft of a Range Rover Sport from a driveway in Solihull was reported to us on at 9.45pm on September 29. The car has since been located in Poland. No CCTV or witnesses were identified, but should any new evidence come to light we will assess it.”