Police warn Ford drivers as Nottingham gangs steal cars without need for fob

Ford motorists are being warned about criminal gangs using new devices that allows them to unlock and start up keyless cars.

Nottinghamshire Police say drivers who own vehicles such as Ford Transit vans or Ford Puma STs are falling victim to the thefts.

Officers have revealed 19 Ford vehicles have been stolen across the city division in the last month - with around 11 of them being stolen without keys.

It is thought gangs are using a device which allows them to gain entry to the vehicle and then using a tool to start up the engine without the need for a key fob.

The force says criminals have been targeting residential areas across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire and seem to be particularly attracted to the Ford car model.

Neighbourhood Inspector Gordon Fenwick said: "There has been no broken glass at the scene of these crimes, so they are not using traditional methods to gain entry.

“They are then plugging a device into the vehicle to override the system and starting up the car without the need of a key fob or activating the stop and start button.

“These are high-value cars, with all victims still in possession of their keys at the time of the thefts. Criminals have therefore got their hands on these devices.

“We are starting to see an increase in these types of car thefts and have a team of officers working at tracking these career criminals down.”

In a statement, a spokesman for Ford told ITV News Central: "Ford takes vehicle security very seriously and continuously invests in security measures that are integrated into our vehicles to deter theft.

"Our security team routinely monitors and investigates new ways thieves are targeting our vehicles to maintain a high level of deterrence.

"We are constantly learning more about these latest theft techniques, assessing the effectiveness of software, hardware and design counter-measures, and engineering security upgrades into our vehicles."

Officers are scouring through CCTV and ANPR cameras to track the offenders down with neighbourhood officers carrying out patrols in hotspot areas.

Mr Fenwick said: “We have some really good intelligence and are working on a number of lines of inquiry to stop this group in their tracks.

“Residents should be able to park their cars freely on their drives or on the streets of Nottingham without falling victim to this type of horrible crime.”

Police say there are some precautions drivers of these vehicles can take to stop their cars being stolen.

Mr Fenwick said: “The best way to prevent criminals targeting these vehicles is installing wheel locks or steering wheel locks.

"If criminals see a physical device in your car, they will more than likely go somewhere else. They want to be in and out in seconds.

"They don’t want to be hacking off locks and will think twice about targeting your car.”