Stolen vehicle recovered within 30 minutes and one suspect arrested

A stolen Range Rover was pursued by police which resulted in one suspect arrested and the victim’s dog reunited with its owner.

Police received a call at 4pm yesterday afternoon (Thursday 25 February 2022) from a member of the public who was in the Acomb area of York. They called police to report that their Range Rover had just been stolen from outside a shop with their Doberman dog left inside the vehicle.

Officers in the area were immediately alerted and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) work was carried out to guide officers towards the vehicle. The owner of the vehicle had a tracking device fitted and was able to help police by giving live updates on its movements.

Specialist resources including roads policing officers, the National Police Air Service helicopter (NPAS) and a police dog unit were all scrambled towards the stolen vehicle.

Officers managed to put a stinger site in place on the A163 at North Duffield and the stolen vehicle was stung less than 30 minutes after it was reported to police. The vehicle managed to continue for a short time before it overturned in a field.

(Image of the overturned vehicle)

The suspect remained with the vehicle and officers quickly moved in to detain the man. The owner’s dog who remained inside the vehicle for the length of the pursuit fled from the vehicle once it overturned. Once the suspect was detained by officers the police helicopter focused on the dog who ran half a mile from the stolen vehicle. The helicopter guided units towards the shaken dog. A vet was quickly brought in to assist with the welfare of the dog who did not suffer serious injuries.

(Image of the overturned vehicle) 

A 29-year-old man from the York area was arrested on suspicion of aggravated taking vehicle without consent, driving whilst disqualified, failing to stop for the police, driving whilst unfit through drugs, driving dangerously and driving a motor vehicle with no insurance. The man was accompanied to a local hospital for minor treatment before he was taken to police custody where he currently remains.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “This was a distressing incident for the victim and unfortunately despite the recovery of the vehicle, it has sustained serious damage.

“The quick action of the victim and the immediate response from police has led to the arrest of a suspect. It also reunited the dog with his owner and its also nice when a ‘tail’ has a happy ending.”

(The road closure in place to allow the stolen vehicle to be recovered)