CAR CANNIBALS
We woke up shocked after finding half the car we’d just sold was missing – I thought I was dreaming… it’s a total mess
The vehicle's owner believes he knows who is behind the crime
A COUPLE who were due to drop off a car they had just sold were left reeling when thieves stripped the vehicle overnight.
Brazen thieves set upon Rory Tymon and wife Natalia's Volkswagen T-Roc - which was parked close to their property in Winton, Salford.
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The thugs removed the motor's bonnet, panels and other bits from the front of the vehicle before fleeing the scene, Manchester Evening News .
Rory, 31, had parked the car in its usual spot in front of Winton Dental Practice on Vaughan Street.
He believes the criminals nabbed the parts between 9.30pm on Wednesday and 6am on Thursday.
While the Volkswagen is leased under Rory's name, the radiographer had been due to drop the motor at the home of it's new owner before the shock incident.
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"The car had been sold and I was about to drive it to the new owner's house at 6.30am," he said.
"I got to the car and was like 'oh my God.'"
"It was a shock.
"They've taken the front bumper, the lights, the radiator, the bonnet and parts of the wheel arches and engine - everything from the front."
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Natalia's brother, who lives with the couple, broke the news to the two after returning home from a night shift.
Rory added: "He walked up and said 'I'm not sure how to say this... but half your car is missing'.
"I said to Natalia 'am I still sleeping? Am I dreaming?'.
"We stood there looking at it with our mouths open for a while and then called the police."
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"It's an unbelievable situation to be in.
"[The new owner] hasn't even driven the car and he's already having to go through insurance on writing it off."
A spokesperson from Greater Manchester Police told the Manchester Evening News the case remains 'active', but that lines of enquiry have been exhausted.
Rory says he suspects that a gang may have been responsible for the crime.
We stood there looking at it with our mouths open for a while and then called the police
Rory Tymon
"The road next to it is the main road going through Eccles and it's a very busy area. I don't know how they did it without anyone seeing," he said.
"I can't imagine it's a single person."
A post-pandemic shortage of car parts - which has been exacerbated by the Ukraine invasion - is one reason for the crime wave.
Government statistics reveal crimes involving thefts from motor vehicles - which includes car cannibalism - were up 10 per cent last year at 212,900 offences nationwide.
The trend has been seen in parts of Yorkshire, Scotland and Essex, and at least three Land Rovers had doors stolen from them while parked at Glastonbury.
Models most at risk
But the West Midlands is the worst hit, and cars particularly at risk include the Vauxhall Corsa, Toyota Yaris, Ford Fiesta and Renault Clio.
Almost 20,000 thefts from motor vehicles were reported to West Midlands police between last September and March.
Thieves have struck in Digbeth, Erdington, Sutton Coldfield and Smethwick and - in one worrying escalation - thugs drove at a female victim when she caught them red-handed dismantling her car outside her home.
Vehicle crime expert and former Detective Chief Superintendent Clive Wain said the epidemic was linked to the rise of backstreet ‘chop shops’ which steal cars and dismantle them for parts.
“We’ve seen a huge increase in chop shops around the country,” explained Mr Wain, head of police liaison with car security specialists Tracker. “Car cannibalisation is a very crude version of that.
“Even basic car parts have shot up in price and become harder to get hold of, so - suddenly - this is a very lucrative market for criminals.
“I do think there’s a level of organisation behind it because the thieves have a ready-made outlet.
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“The vast majority go to chop shops run by crime groups, and there’s a huge influence from eastern Europe in particular in terms of coordinating those thefts.
“To think that these individuals can just strip a vehicle in broad daylight in front of people - it is a very, very worrying turn of events.”
Mark your parts
It’s unlikely you’ll ever recover your parts if they are stolen, but marking them can make it easier for the police to identify them.
In some cases, marked parts can be a deterrent if the thief notices the marking, as they’ll be more reluctant to steal a part that can be traced.
People buying the parts may also realise they have been stolen if they’re marked, and if so, they may be more likely to contact the police.
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