Sat-nav smash and grab thieves thrive

Jun 4 2009 by Sam Casey, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

SAT-navs are being stolen from cars in Huddersfield at a rate of about one a day.

And police say the crimewave is on the rise.

Since the start of the year, 122 satellite navigation systems have been pinched from cars during break-ins.

The figure for the whole of West Yorkshire Police’s Kirklees division, which includes Dewsbury and Mirfield, is 225.

The statistics are a slight improvement compared to the same period in 2008, when 158 sat navs were taken in Huddersfield and 252 in Kirklees overall.

But police are concerned following a spate of incidents in the last few weeks.

Det Con Russ Conlon said: “Almost daily a sat-nav system is being stolen and it’s because of the telltale signs being left in the car.

“It’s not just the sat-nav itself that gives it away – it’s the holder that attaches to the windscreen, the charger and attachments.

“Even the sticky mark left on the windscreen is enough to tempt some people to break in.”

In one of the most recent incidents, in the early hours of Tuesday, a car was broken into on Platnam Grove in Birkby.

A side window was smashed and the sat-nav was taken from the glovebox.

Although the gadget itself had been hidden, the charger and cradle had been left in the side door pocket where they could clearly be seen.

Two days earlier, a car was broken into during the night on Almondbury Bank in Almondbury.

The sat nav and cradle were taken. The equipment had been left attached to the windscreen.