Solihull Police issue fresh ‘Corsa Cannibalism’ warning

Police in Solihull are urging drivers to be wary, after so called ‘Corsa Cannibals’ struck again over the weekend.

Thieves stripped bonnets, grilles and headlights from four Corsa’s throughout the course of the weekend, bringing the total number of reported offences in recent weeks to eleven.

It’s thought crafty thieves are able to quickly and efficiently remove front end parts from Vauxhall Corsa’s without causing any damage.

The phenomenon first hit nationally back in 2013, and the term ‘Corsa Cannibal’ was coined.

Hundreds of ‘cannibalism’ offences have been reported elsewhere in the country, but the craze has remained relatively unheard of in the West Midlands until recently.

Today the force are urging drivers to be aware of the trend and think about how they can protect their vehicle, or make it inaccessible to thieves.

Mark Silvester head of Crime Prevention at West Midlands Police said: “This method of theft is unusual in the West Midlands, but we’ve seen a flurry of offences in a short space of time.

“I would urge drivers to park their cars in well-lit areas. Make sure the car is locked, and if your car has an alarm, make sure it is set. If you have a garage try and use it, or if that’s not possible park up as close to a garage door or wall or even another vehicle if you can.

“You may also want to think about installing added security to your drive or parking space. Installing a dusk till dawn security light or using a track n trace marking kit is going to be a lot cheaper than replacing the front end of your vehicle or seeing an increase in insurance premiums.

“The force recently joined forces with SelectaDNA https://www.selectadna.co.uk/dna-asset-marking/selectadna-vehicle-kit to offer 50% off DNA property marking kits. To get the discount all you need to do is sign up to our FREE community alert system WMNOW https://www.wmnow.co.uk.”

It’s widely believed the Vauxhall Corsa model is targeted by crooks because of their popularity, especially with younger drivers, meaning they are more likely to be involved in a collision, with drivers after a cheap fix.

The end destination for some of these stolen parts will be the second hand market, perhaps through chop shops and the warning to Corsa drivers today comes as the force launched a campaign chop shops operating in the region yesterday (13th August).

A WMP spokesperson said: “If anyone has any suspicions about chop shops or car thieves operating in their area, we want to hear from them so we can investigate. It could turn out to be nothing but equally it could be the information we need to smash a car theft gang – and save motorists from suffering at their hands.”

Further information on chop shops here: https://west-midlands.police.uk/node/6327

Read more: https://west-midlands.police.uk/news/6336/solihull-police-issue-fresh-corsa-cannibalism-warning