Three Ford Fiestas stolen from Telford village in one night by keyless thieves

West Mercia Police has received reports that three of the cars were stolen in the Lawley area during the early hours of Tuesday morning. The thieves are believed to have used a keyless entry before making off with the vehicles.

Officers would also like to hear from anyone who may have any dash-cam footage that captures any Ford Fiestas being driven around the area between 3.30am and 5am, or any doorbell camera footage or CCTV footage.

The cars were stolen from Bickerton Grove, Dutimoors Drive and Village Drive. Another Ford Fiesta was also broken into on Village Drive during the night.

Detective Sergeant Paul Smeilus, from the organised crime and burglary team, said: “While there is much the public can do to protect their own property I would like to reassure everyone that we are working hard to catch those responsible.

“A lot of our intelligence comes from concerned members of the public who may have seen people hanging around or acting suspiciously. Please, if you saw anyone acting suspiciously near your car or your property in the Lawley area of Telford last night, call us on 101 and let us know.

“Many car key fobs allow for ‘keyless entry’, a system in which the car can read the signal of your fob so you can open the door without pressing a button. Unfortunately the signal sent out by the fob can be captured by criminals using a cheap and readily available tool called a ‘relay device’. If they capture - or clone - your key’s signal they can then open your car and drive it away

“One of the simplest ways to protect your keys is to invest in something known as a ‘Faraday Pouch’. This is a small pouch for your keys which is lined with metal foil which the radio waves cannot penetrate.

“You can also add a device to physically immobilise the car such as a steering wheel lock. Any physical device like this will act as a very visible deterrent and given the additional time and effort that will be needed to overcome these devices will make would be thieves think twice about targeting your vehicle.”

Anyone who has any information or dash-cam footage is urged to call 101 quoting incident 00066_I_21122021or visit our website or report it online via our website www.westmerciapolice.uk/tua/tell-us-about/

Alternatively, if you have information but don’t feel comfortable speaking to police, you can speak to the independent charity Crimestoppers. It is 100% anonymous, they never ask your name and they cannot trace your call or IP address. You can contact them online or by calling 0800 555 111.