Teenage gangs stealing expensive cars hit Greenwich

London: Roaming gangs have carried out a spate of car thefts by "fishing" through homeowners letterboxes for keys.

Detectives believe at least two gangs of teenagers and young men are targeting houses in Greenwich at night with expensive vehicles parked outside.

In the past month, 14 cars worth a total of more than £150,000 (Dh997,500), have been stolen. They include Mercedes and BMW models.

The thieves poke a bamboo stick with a hook attached to the end, or sometimes a magnet, through the letterbox to snatch keys that have been left just inside the front door. They select their victims simply by how expensive the car in the drive is. The gangs will check if there is an alarm system or guard dogs.

Typically, some members will keep watch while one approaches the front door and looks through the letterbox to see if keys have been left on a table or a ledge within reach.

On average, they have stolen one car every two days for the past month and scanned scores of other houses for potential targets.

A gang from south-east London and another from east London target Greenwich and further into Kent.

It is believed they may be working to order for a wider criminal network. The vehicles are often taken to garages where they have their identities altered by the changing of numberplates and chassis numbers.

Detective Inspector Richard Beadle of Plumstead police said: "This is not a highly sophisticated or new type of crime but there has been a worrying increase in these car thefts.

"But we are on to them. We have successfully targeted and arrested one gang but remain concerned that others are still active within our area."