The latest craze in thefts is from cars, not out of cars but from underneath your car, we had a memo from work about this one, a nurse where I work went back to her car and found someone had pinched the exhaust and catalytic converter.
Then went around to my mates tonight and she told me how she had hers pinched while her car was parked for no more than 15 minutes in a Tesco carpark this week, she was lucky in so much as they they didn't realise her car had two or her repair bill would have been in excess of £1500
Apparently its happening big time now, they pull up next to a car in a van and then park a posh car behind to shield them and slide the side door of the van open slide under your car and take the catalytic converter and off they go.
I can confirm this is happening. I had an email at work about it. Its all to do with the high value of metal nowadays.
The email didnt tell me how to stop it happening though
If its metal, they will try and have it away. I have at least 6 calls during a tour of duty about theft/attempted theft of metals. Mainly scrap i have to admit, but copper piping is very popular also. It may seem trivial, but if you see anyone suspicious hanging around your street or men in scruffy vans, particularly if there are empty properties or people having work done, report them to the police. Better to be safe than sorry.
yep i'm afraid to say its our old friends the tinkers.
electrical flex is a favourite too because of its high copper content.
Brass and copper are currently around £5000 per ton....the other year it was less than £10 per ton.
Its to do with the demands of developing industrial nations such as china and india needing more metal.
You will find that its mainly 4X4 vehicles being targeted as these can be got under easily.
This increasing metal theft has lead to signs/lamposts now being made from mixed metals...its harder and lots more hassle to refine them to their base metals......of course its us the humble tax payer that covers the cost.
It will be exotic bike silencers next...bet you wish you never bought that titanium can!
Yeah also they been hiting Medway (Kent) they have been lifting manhole & drain covers. A few weeks ago they removed meters of new s/steel fencing, along the river walk at Rochester
Now it has been closed while new funding is found.
Haha and we all know about that
This is from the Telegraph : Thefts of metal from the railways, church roofs and even war memorial plaques has risen by more than 150 per cent in the last two years.
Police forces across the country have launched a major two day crackdown on the illegal trade, which caused more than 2,500 hours of delays to rail commuters last year.
Officers targeted suspected scrap yards and suspicious vehicles in an attmept to remove rogue traders from the industry.
A rise in scrap metal prices, due to soaring demand from emerging economic powerhouses led by China and India, is said to be fuelling the crime.
Black market cooper can fetch up to £4,000 per tonne, almost double the price in 2006, making 2p pieces more value when melted down for scrap.
Assistant Chief Constable Paul Crowther of the British Transport Police said: "This is far from a victimless crime. Thousands of people have seen their community facilities stolen or damaged by thieves looking for a quick gain, or have suffered service disruption to railways and telecoms."
"The problem ranges from opportunistic to large-scale organised theft. This has a huge impact across the country - not just financially, but in people's everyday lives."
Three years ago a £3 million bronze statue by sculptor Henry Moore was stolen from the grounds of a museum. The two tonne statue of "a reclining figure" is thought to have been melted down for scrap.
In May, a medieval church in County Durham suffered £10,000 worth of damage when thieves stole lead from its roof.
Vicar Ken Steventon said: "It's always a sickening feeling, just as if your house had been broken into. A lot of people in the parish were devastated."
Cats being stolen.... red diesel tanks being raided.... car fuel tanks being drilled and drained.... *sigh*
There is an American company that produces something called a CatClamp which is said to prevent theft.
Alternative is to park over a speed bump so that they don't have room to work!
I would suggest a sticker on your cat converter saying "contains palladium / rhodium NOT platinum" but I doubt the thief would understand - he is just a minion....
Maybe we could use a form of trap or bait car that police forces currently use to trap car thieves, but instead of handing out suspended sentences and slaps on the wrist, I suggest:
Fuel tanks that explode upon being drilled or contain acid...
Cars fitted with hydraulic suspension that lower to the ground when the cat is removed, thus squishing the little runt!
Mind you, I am sure there will be somebody who defends these scum and say that we can't touch them... *shrugs shoulders*
Today's Huddersfield Examiner:
http://www.examiner.co.uk/news/local-west-yorkshire-new...-21404787/
Could've been seriously nasty for the scrotes involved. Not that I'd have shed too many tears if they'd met their maker.
I am just having my leaded windows replaced and the man doing them said that where he takes them to despose of them there are people sitting there stripping the lead of the glass to sell it.
Mind you this did bring a smile to my face as naughty as it was when I was growing up in a big family and times were hard I can remember going down the tat yard with my Dad to sell drain pipes and roof lead. He used to give us threepany bit or a sixpence each depending how much he got for the lead. I remember also going to confession and telling the priest about being party to selling stolen lead not realising at the time my Dad had taken it off the Catholic school roof he was a caretaker at. Bless my Dad no wonder he died with a smile on his face.
My spies in Huddersfield tell me that they were after the copper lightning conductor which ran to the top of the steeple. Tied one end of a rope to the lightning conductor, the other end to their car, and drove away. You can guess the rest.
I suggest we start a new black market in caravan paneling and used gas bottles and go hit some tinker camps!
" On my command.......Unleash small tack hammers and safety gloves!"
Ghosty I will send you a picture of "Onslo" my 23yr old pride and joy so you don't strip it down or pinch my gas bottles.
Oh did I mention I am not only known at CG but also as PB, Pikey on a Bikey. lol
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