BBC News | NORTHERN IRELAND | Drivers stranded in new auto scam

Belfast car thieves are enticing unwary drivers out of their vehicles with a new scam.

The tricksters are flagging down cars in the street and indicating that there is a problem, like a flat tyre or the car boot left open.

When the driver gets out to look, the thief jumps into the vehicle and drives off, leaving the astonished owner stranded.

Several cars have been stolen in Belfast city centre using the new scam in the last few weeks.

Carpark queue

On one instance on Monday, two men approached a woman queuing for a carpark on Clarence Street, motioning that there was something wrong with the rear of her vehicle.

People are inclined to think all people are honest and are being good Samaritans - but they are opportunists and drivers are being taken in by common thieves

Trevor Murphy RUC
When she got out of the car, leaving the keys in the ignition, one of the men jumped in and drove off.

The other man, acting as an outraged citizen, shouted after the thief and gave chase.

The car then stopped, he got in, and they drove away.

And in another incident last Wednesday, a woman driving to Tomb Street had her car stolen after a man flagged her down, also indicating there was something wrong with the car.

New trend

Sergeant Trevor Murphy from the Royal Ulster Constabulary Auto Crime Team in Belfast is warning drivers to be aware of the trick.

"People are inclined to think all people are honest and are being good Samaritans, trying to help them," he told BBC News Online.

"But these people are opportunists and drivers are being taken in by common thieves."

Most cars broken into and stolen in Northern Ireland are now more than two years old, because the latest models have more sophisticated security devices.

'Danglers'

So thieves were now regularly targeting new cars with the keys left in the ignition, Mr Murphy said.

"We have a big increase in this type of theft. Cars are big money and this is now a major problem.

"Thieves in the trade call them danglers."

Cars with keys in the ignition are being targeted at:

petrol station forecourts

secure carparks when they get out to unlock the gate

cashpoints

newsagents

night deposit boxes.

But Mr Murphy said the faulty-car ruse, targeting drivers in daylight hours, was a new phenomenon.

"The trend has been that people coming home from work and people who have just paid for on-street carparking have been targeted.

"All the cases reported have involved lone females, but this could just be a coincidence," he said.

Mr Murphy advised anyone who was approached while in their car to lock it and phone the police if they had a mobile phone.

"If they feel unsure, they should drive on and stop some distance away in a safe, well-lit place, and check their car there," he said.

"If they do get out, they should take the key and lock the car."

Rising statistics

Recent RUC statistics showed car theft was up 20% last year, from 8,090 reported cases in 1998 to 9,715 in 1999.

The police said the rise was likely to continue, with figures for the first quarter of 2000 listing over 3,000 reported cases, in comparison to 2,664 for the same period in 1999.

The RUC estimates that there are 2,000 car thieves in Northern Ireland, with a hard core of 250, aged between 16 and 21.


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