There has been an increase in the theft of Japanese imported vehicles in the county.
That’s according to local Gardaí who are appealing for information after a silver Honda Jazz was found abandoned in the College Park area of Letterkenny in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Upon investigation, it was established that there was no obvious damage caused to the ignition barrel and the keys were still in possession of the owner.
“We appeal to anybody who may have seen this car being driven within the College Park area that morning to make contact with Gardaí in Letterkenny on 074-9167100,” a garda spokesperson said.
Earlier this year, statistics from An Garda Síochána showed a growth in car thefts.
This is driven by the theft of second-hand imported cars from outside Europe, and may be due to the lack of security features in the most commonly stolen imported vehicles.
“We have certainly noticed a rise in the theft of Japanese imported vehicles, in particular within the Letterkenny District in recent times,” the spokesperson added.
Many second-hand car imports do not have a fully fitted car alarm system or are without a fitted immobiliser. This makes them vulnerable to hot-wiring. If the model has a keyless ignition it has been proven possible to pick up a signal from the key fob from within the house where it is parked.