Thieves swipe 16 tippers
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• A gang of thieves operating in the South of England appears to be responsible for a spate of thefts of eightwheel 30-tonne tippers.
A total of 16 such vehicles, together with around 2560,000, have gone missing from depots as far apart as Worthing in the South and Cambridge in the North since last May, but in each case, the robbery has followed a similar pattern.
On each occasion the thieves have entered depots at night, broken the side window of the vehicle, disconnected the dashboard and steering cowling and hot-wired the vehicle to get it started. None of the vehicles have been recovered.
One tipper operator that has been particularly badly hit by the tipper thefts is Watfordbased Cinnamond Plant. Plant manager Jerome Toomey says his company has had three vehicles stolen this year.
On the first occasion, in June, thieves stole a Scammel Routeman (registration number FLN 626T, engine number 6807863171 and chassis number WHV 61489) from Cinnamond's Watford depot On the second occasion, last month thieves broke into three Volvo F7s and hot-wired the vehicles (registration numbers C720 EJO and C721 EJO, engine numbers, 171402 and 171384 respectively, and chassis numbers 33260 and 33689 respectively) apparently deciding to leave the third Volvo which was loaded.
Toomey says the thefts have meant he has had to lay off drivers, employ security staff, fit anti-theft devices to his remaining eight tippers and pay sharply increased insurance premiums: all of which is costing between 2150 and 2200 each week.
The company has advertised a 25,000 reward in the London Evening Standard for information leading to the recovery of the trucks, but all to no avail.
Another tipper operator, Brian Pelham of B C Pelham (Bulk Tip) had his Leyland Constructor stolen from his depot on a modern trading estate in Littlehampton, Sussex.
Pelham says somebody who lives on the estate heard the sound of a lorry at about 2am on the night that the tipper was stolen, and that is the last anybody saw or heard of his vehicle (registration number C400 PUF, engine number 23506277 and chassis number SBSA8T57PSJG70167).
Scotland Yard said there is no central index of vehicles stolen in London.