BEWARE this health warning. Car crime can turn offenders green; quite literally.

The police have a special car which can catch the eye of opportunist thieves.

They see equipment inside which they are tempted to steal.

But once in the car a green liquid known as Smartwater erupts, showering them.

The criminals’ clothes and skin are heavily stained with the liquid, which takes weeks to remove.

It means the police can link them to the crime once they are caught as each batch of Smartwater has its own DNA and that DNA is unique to the Capture Car.

This scheme has led to many arrests and prosecutions across the whole of West Yorkshire over the past two years.

A Huddersfield man was recently arrested after falling for the Capture Car ploy after it was parked in the town.

People who make false crime reports should learn from the case of a woman who was caught out a few days ago.

The West Yorkshire woman falsely told police her house had been burgled by thieves who then stole her car.

She claimed someone had sneaked into her home through an insecure door, found her car keys and drove off in the vehicle. It was later found crashed into a hedge and damaged at the front.

After questioning by police the woman admitted this had not been the case and the car had not been stolen, but driven by a family member instead.

She was fined £80 for wasting police time.

Det Insp Paul Conroy, from North East Leeds Division, said: “When we began investigating this report we soon found the allegation to be false. This waste of valuable police time could have diverted us from the needs of genuine victims.

“People make false claims for all kinds of reasons, often personal financial gain.

“We will always get to the bottom of what has actually happened.

“False reports waste police resources and will not be tolerated. While real victims should never be discouraged from coming forward anyone making a bogus report should expect to be punished.

“Every burglary report will be investigated in a timely and methodical manner to maximise the opportunities for an early arrest and prosecution.

“When the police discover an individual has made a false report they will be dealt with positively to discourage similar reports and allow us to focus on genuine victims and crimes.”