Detectives are investigating a recent spike in catalytic convertor thefts across the Nottinghamshire area including five thefts in a 24-hour period, with four believed to be carried out by the same criminal gang.
The thefts happened on the same night across four different areas but Nottinghamshire Police are linking the incidents and are appealing for anyone who may have any dashcam or CCTV footage or may have witnessed the thefts to contact them.
This comes just days after it was revealed nationally that thefts of catalytic converters from cars in England and Wales rose six-fold in 2019.
Last year, there were almost 13,000 recorded thefts of the devices nationally. In 2018, there were just over 2,000 thefts. The offences tailed off at the start of lockdown but are on the increase with a number committed locally in the past few weeks.
The reason for the thefts is the valuable metals inside the converters, including platinum, which can be sold for scrap value.
Prices have rocketed for rhodium, platinum and palladium, with palladium selling more per gram than gold last year.
The belief is that organised gangs are behind the thefts across the country, prompting intelligence-led operations to stop the converters from being stolen.
In the most recent Nottinghamshire cases, which all happened overnight on Tuesday 25 August and into the early hours of yesterday morning, three men were disturbed by the homeowner during the first theft in Costock Avenue, Sherwood, at 11.51 pm.
The men took the catalytic converter and drove away in what is believed to be a dark coloured BMW, heading towards Hucknall Road.
Around 25 minutes later, at 12.15 am, a catalytic converter was stolen from a car in Ashwell Gardens, Hyson Green with reports of four males driving a dark coloured BMW seen in the vicinity at that time.
The third catalytic converter was taken 30 minutes later, at 12.51 am, where the owner witnessed his car being jacked up in Faraday Road, Lenton, with the catalytic converter being stolen and the offenders speeding off in their vehicle afterwards.
The final overnight incident took place in Ampthill Rise, Sherwood sometime between 10 pm on the 25 August and 5 am yesterday morning, where the owner has gone to his car to find the catalytic converter has been taken.
Yesterday afternoon, in Auckland Close, Radford, it was reported that another catalytic converter was taken from a vehicle at 12.18 pm, bringing the total to five thefts within a 24-hour period. These thefts come on the back of a series of similar thefts across the city and county, with officers warning residents to take care as the crime is clearly rising again locally.
Chief Superintendent Rob Griffin, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “We are working hard as a force to tackle this type of crime, which leave victims with costly repair bills and without a car.
“We see a spike in catalytic converter thefts from time to time as a force, but this a national and regional issue, rather than being just a Nottinghamshire issue. Catalytic converters are targeted because they contain high-value metals, and it can take just 60 seconds to steal.
“Whilst we are focussing on the investigation of these offences, we have also put in place extra patrols in some of the area we know to be repeat locations. We are determined to find those that are responsible.
“We believe these incidents are linked and we are keen to identify who is responsible and bring them to justice. If you have CCTV, or you witnessed a dark-coloured BMW driving around Hyson Green, Sherwood and Hucknall between 10 pm and 5 am, please do get in touch.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact 101 quoting incident number 782 of 25 August 2020 for Costock Avenue, incident number 17 of 26 August 2020 for Ashwell Gardens, incident number 28 of 26 August 2020 for Faraday Road, incident 70 of 26 August 2020 for Ampthill Rise and incident number 250 of 26 August 2020 for Auckland Close.
Nottinghamshire Police say drivers can do some things to protect their cars:
• Where possible park all vehicles in a locked garage when unattended
• If that is not possible, park vehicles in a busy, well-lit area as close as possible to the owner’s property
• Consider installing a Thatcham-approved alarm to vehicles. Ones that activate if a vehicle is lifted or tilted are particularly effective
• Use a catalytic converter protection device or marking system
*The video used in this article relates to a catalytic converter theft which took place in December 2019.
