Thieves have stolen Amazon and Hermes delivery vans left unattended and with their engines running in Brighton and Hove.
Sussex Police said: “Police are urging motorists to be vigilant following a spate of thefts of unattended vans over the past few days.
“At least five incidents have been reported. On each occasion, the vehicle was left temporarily unattended with the keys in the ignition.”
Inspector James Scott, of the Sussex Roads Policing Unit, said: “We appreciate people lead busy lives and it may seem like a good idea to leave your vehicle running while you make a quick stop or a delivery, for example.
“But this can present the chance for opportunist thieves to pounce. In turn, this leads to an increase in reports to police, who are required to investigate each individual incident.
“By taking a few simple measures, these incidents can be avoided.
“Remember to lock your vehicle when it’s unattended and keep the keys safe.
“Wherever possible, do not leave any items of value in your vehicle when it is unattended. And in particular, do not leave any items of value on display.
“Take precautions, remain vigilant and, if you witness any suspicious activity or a crime in action, report it to us.”
- The five recent incidents are
- A white Vauxhall Vivaro Amazon van was stolen from Hampton Place, Brighton, on Saturday 30 January. It was later found in Chailey Road, Brighton. A police dog unit tracked from the vehicle to a nearby address where three suspects – two boys, aged 16 and 17, and a man, aged 22, all from Brighton – were arrested on suspicion of theft of a vehicle. They have been released on conditional bail until Sunday 28 February, pending further inquiries.
- A white Vauxhall Vivaro Hermes van was stolen from Landsowne Place, Hove, on Thursday 4 February. It was later found and recovered from St Michael’s Place, Brighton.
- A black Vauxhall Vivaro Amazon van was stolen from Richardson Road, Hove, on Friday 5 February. It was found and recovered from Mortimer Road, Hove, the next day. Inquiries led to the arrest of a 17-year-old boy, from Hove, on suspicion of theft of a vehicle. He has been released on conditional bail until Saturday 6 March, pending further inquiries.
- A white Ford Transit van containing a large number of tools was stolen from Boundary Road, Hove, on Tuesday 9 February. The van is yet to be recovered.
- A silver Ford Connect was stolen from Pevensey Road, Eastbourne, on Friday 12 February. It was found a short time later by officers who pursued it to the Seven Sisters. The driver – a 22-year-old local man – expressed remorse and was given a simple caution for taking a vehicle without the owner’s consent.
It is unknown at this stage if anything was stolen from either of the Fords.
Yes, drivers shouldn’t leave their keys in the van. But if it is stolen and the driver caught, should the police really just “punish” with a simple caution? Even if the thief “expresses remorse”. I’m sure they did that, they’d just been caught!
We really shouldn’t have to guard our things that carefully. And now, more than ever, we rely on delivery drivers. Many of whom are self-employed. They deserve to be protected too. So if a thief is caught then they should be dealt with by the courts – we need to deter this type of theft, particularly from key workers.
But even the courts fail to deal with them. Every week we read about judges giving out feeble punishments to criiminals. Unfortunately deterrence of crime is in very short supply when it comes to the judiciary and the police. It is astonishing that expressing remorse should allow a thief to be allowed to be free of an arrest and conviction. I bet the owner of the car was not overjoyed.