Theft of hot wheels ‘bizarre’, say cops

Oct 26 2010 by Denis Brown, Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

BURNT-OUT remains of a campervan stolen earlier this month have vanished from a crime scene on the outskirts of Coupar Angus.

Police already investigating the earlier theft of the customised Ford Econoline worth £15,000 and found ablaze at North Ballo Hill are now also hot on the trail of the charred chassis and engine.

A Tayside Police spokesman described the latest development as “bizarre”, pointing out that a recovery vehicle or large trailer would have been required to spirit away the razed five-ton wreck.

The cream-coloured van – a 1991 model, registration G600 YBW, refurbished by the owner, a man in his 40s – was originally stolen from nearby North Ballo Farm cottage after 2.30pm on Friday, October 8.

At 8.55pm next day a motorist on the Inchture to Woodside road passing the Tullybaccart woodlands alerted Tayside Fire and Rescue after spotting the flaming van in the Forestry Commission car park.

Firefighters duly attended the scene, which is about four miles from Coupar Angus, swiftly establishing that no one was inside and extinguishing the fire.

Police investigating the “unusual” crime were keeping an open mind as to whether the thieves had torched the vehicle or culprits were people who discovered it parked at the North Ballo Hill site or elsewhere.

The spokesman said the charred remains had been examined by forensic officers and left on site for removal by the owner or insurance company.

He said the subsequent theft of the chassis and engine – sometime between 1pm and 7.30 pm last Tuesday – was “bizarre”.

“You could say it’s like a phoenix rising out of the ashes as there certainly wasn’t much of the van left, and why someone would want it, we’re not sure,” he said.

“It could have some scrap value, and strictly speaking, it is now the property of the insurance company.”

Police have now reissued an appeal to dog walkers who frequent the popular North Ballo Hill area near Coupar Angus, asking for witnesses to the unauthorised removal of the burnt-out van.

“The car park where the van was found is immediately adjacent to the road; it’s a reasonably quiet road but the woods there are very popular with dog walkers,” he said.

“We’d also like to hear from motorists using the Inchture to Woodside road or indeed the road from Abernyte to Balbeggie who may have seen the culprits or a large vehicle in the vicinity.”