THIEVES TARGET NHS WORKERS

THIEVES have taken advantage of NHS staff working extra hours by stealing catalytic converters from their cars.

A number of thefts of catalytic converters have taken place at the University Hospital of Wales (UHW) campus at the Heath in Cardiff.

Staff say they are feeling “anxious” as their cars are parked for up to 12 hours.

Dr Hisham Jaber, a doctor in clinical radiology, said his vehicle was targeted last Friday.

He said security staff at the hospital told him there had been a number of similar incidents recently.

“I’m not sure if everyone has been reporting it but it has happened to someone in my department,” he said.

“When you come to work you shouldn’t have to worry about your car. It causes a lot of anxiety, distress and it can also be dark in the multistorey car park, especially in the winter.

“My car is a hybrid and when I turned it on it was so loud so I thought the exhaust had gone. I drove the car slowly all the way home and when I called recovery, he told me what had happened.

“It caused me a lot of stress over the weekend. It helped me a lot coming in to work but I’m worried about bringing this car back in to the hospital.”

Dr Hisham’s car is currently in for repair.

He said that the receptionist at Toyota told him a number of NHS staff have had their catalytic converters stolen while they have been at work.

He added: “I don’t know why NHS staff are being targeted but perhaps it is because they know the car will be in the car park for a number of hours.

“If it happens again I don’t know what I will do. The thieves know where to find our cars and it’s easy for them to get away with it.

“A lot of the staff are worried because they know the car park isn’t safe any more even if they don’t have hybrid cars.

“I’m looking to buy another car, I just want a car that will take me to work and not have any worry. I bought it as it’s better for the environment, but right now I don’t care.”

A spokesperson for Cardiff and Vale University Health Board said: “We are aware of a number of thefts of catalytic converters from vehicles parked at the University Hospital of Wales. Unfortunately, this is not limited to one specific area of the site and sadly reflects what is happening within the local community across Cardiff, with thefts of catalytic converters increasing.

“We are working closely with our on-site police liaison officer and have adapted our patrol strategy to give an increased security presence at the car parking areas on site, and are exploring additional security measures. We urge all staff and visitors to our sites to support this effort by reporting any suspicious activity they see within the designated car parking areas to our security department.”

South Wales Police said a number of similar incidents had been reported.

A spokeswoman for the force said: “South Wales Police can confirm that a report was received that a catalytic converter stolen had been stolen from a Toyota Auris parked in a multi-storey car park at the University Hospital of Wales.

“Unfortunately, there were no witnesses to the theft and the theft was not captured on security cameras.

“There have been a number of similar incidents across the South Wales area. The people stealing catalytic converters know what they are doing and it can often only take minutes for the theft to take place.

“Vehicle owners are urged to take the following simple measures to lessen the risk of being targeted.”

The advice includes:

■ Keep vehicles in a well-secured garage wherever possible, and if no garage is available, in a well-lit area;

■ park vehicles in such a way as to make access to the catalytic converter difficult, including parallel with another vehicle and close to fences, walls and curbs; and

■ Don’t mount the curb when you park as it gives thieves easy access.

Parkingeye, which operates the CCTV cameras at the hospital, says the cameras are fully functional.

A Parkingeye spokesperson said: “As soon as we were made aware of the incidents we offered our assistance to both the police and UHW in helping to identify the culprits and to prevent future incidents occurring in the future.”