Volkswagen owners in south London have been warned after a four-day crime spree saw thieves steal around 70 front badges and radar sensors from vehicles. The thefts took place between July 15 and 19 across 29 roads in areas including Catford, Forest Hill, Ladywell, Honor Oak, East Dulwich and Lewisham. The Metropolitan Police has confirmed inquiries are underway.
Police urge victims to come forward
Officers have stressed that there had been a “number of incidents” and urged any more victims to get in touch. PC Olly Rutherford, leading the investigation for the Metropolitan Police, said: “We are aware of a number of incidents in south-east London over recent weeks in which car badges including the vehicle’s radar sensors have been stolen.
“At this stage, around 70 thefts are believed to have taken place. Inquiries remain under way and we would ask anyone else who believes they have been victim of this type of crime to report the details to us. Similarly, anyone who has information which has not yet been shared with police is asked to get in touch with us as soon as possible.”
Victims describe organised thefts
Giorgina Tomlin, a motorist from Nunhead in Southwark, said her VW badge was stolen on July 18. Her Volkswagen T-Roc was only six weeks old when it was targeted. Four other vehicles were affected on the same road. Ms Tomlin said a friend who lived nearby had noticed a drone from her garden on July 17.
She said: “It was highly organised, they knew exactly where every car was, so they’d obviously scoped it out previously.”
Graham Dunn, 34, said he recorded CCTV of thieves targeting his Volkswagen Tiguan in the same week. He added: “It was two guys on Lime bikes, it took sub-five seconds, and they’ve done nearly two grand of damage in that time. They harvested this area.”
Express.co.uk has contacted Volkswagen for further comment.
