COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

And it's thought that the stolen goods could have been unloaded in Coventry



Engines worth £3m were stolen from Jaguar Land Rover 's Solihull plant in an incredible six-minute heist - before being unloaded in Coventry.

A lorry, presumed stolen, was used in the film-style heist which took place in full view of security cameras.

The huge haul of expensive car parts was stolen in just few minutes on Tuesday night at the car giant's Solihull base.

It is thought the lorry was unloaded in Coventry.

Police are now hunting the gang behind the theft which insiders say has left management and staff ‘stunned’.

JLR is also offering a 'substantial reward'.

A JLR spokesman said: "We can confirm that we are working closely with West Midlands Police to investigate the theft of engines from the Solihull manufacturing plant.

"A reward is on offer to anyone who has information which leads to the successful recovery of these engines.

"It would be inappropriate for us to make any further comment whilst this investigation is ongoing."

Insiders say the stolen lorry arrived at the Lode Lane depot at 10.30pm on Tuesday and entered through the security-manned D1 gate.

The HGV then drove to the Lagoons depot and hooked up to a trailer containing the car engines, before driving out.

Sources claim the criminals obtained paperwork from the site before leaving - making their escape easier.

Sources claim the first theft took just SIX MINUTES.

The stolen lorry is believed to have unloaded in the Coventry area.

Incredibly, the same lorry is believed to returned to the factory a couple of hours later before hooking up another trailer and driving off with more car engines.

A source said: “They just hooked up the trailers. They were in and out in just six minutes with the first theft. The whole place is in uproar about it.”

We have contacted West Midlands Police for a statement.

£3m Jaguar Land Rover robbery was IDENTICAL to secret heist three years ago

Jaguar Land Rover’s Solihull factory was targeted three years ago by criminals - in an identical raid to a £3m heist last week which has Coventry fingerprints.

It has now emerged that Lode Lane factory was targeted in the same way three years ago - but the crime was never made public.

There were striking similarities between the two raids:

*Both used HGVs that were driven through security gates into the depot:

*Both lorries later returned to steal more engines;

*And both vehicles were unloaded in the Coventry area.

It is understood the engines stolen in the raid three years ago were valued at just under £1 million. That raid was never publicised.

It is believed the engines stolen in the raid three years ago were destined for the UK car parts market.

A source said of this week’s raid: “Only senior security staff and management knew about it. Everyone is very shocked.”

Jaguar Land Rover workers have expressed their shock following Tuesday's movie style raid.

One worker, aged 25, who didn’t want to be named said: “I think workers here are in shock. What happened on Tuesday night is what everyone is talking about. You can’t believe how cheeky the gang were and especially coming back for a second time. I agree it is like something out of a movie.”

Another worker added: “We are all stunned by the news. There was millions of pounds of car engine parts taken. You just wonder what impact this raid may have. I just hope police can find the gang responsible.”

You can’t believe how cheeky the gang were and especially coming back for a second time...

Police recover stolen engines in dawn raids in Sutton Coldfield

POLICE have seized engines stolen from Jaguar Land Rover’s Solihull plant after carrying out dawn raids in Sutton Coldfield and Warwickshire.

The news came hours after the Birmingham Mail revealed a number of men had been arrested in connection with the heist, which took place 13 days ago.

They have been bailed pending further inquiries.

West Midlands Police said officers swooped on locations in Kingsbury Road, Minworth, and Bermuda Industrial Park in Nuneaton and discovered the stolen engines.

Detectives have arrested four men aged 29, 40, 47 and 56 on suspicion of conspiracy to steal. All four have been bailed pending further enquiries.

The engines will now be forensically examined by specialist officers.

Detective Inspector Darren Lee, from Solihull’s Investigation Team, said: “This has been a fast-paced inquiry and after searching two locations today we have seized what we believe are the stolen engines.

“This is a significant find and we continue to investigate the theft.

“If anyone has any information they are urged to call me or one of the team on 101. Alternatively people can leave information anonymously by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”