A Helston Town Band member has warned people to be on their guard after thieves attacked his car with an angle grinder while he was at band practice.

The incident took place on Tuesday evening, while Simon Wills was attending a band practice in the Godolphin Club in Helston.

The drummer, who can be seen on Flora Day playing the snare drum and also on occasion the bass drum, had parked in the Wendron Street Car Park next door to the club at 7.45pm.

When he came out he discovered the catalytic converter on his car had been cut off, he believes with an angle grinder.

Simon told the Packet: “I must have parked about three spaces to the left as you go in. You could see my car from the road quite easily.

“I came out about 10.15pm, started my car and it was sounding like a tractor.

“I’ve heard about thieves targeting vehicles like that. It’s brazen.”

Falmouth Packet:

He now wants to warn other people to be careful, and believes thieves may be targeting petrol 4x4 vehicles due to the catalytic converters being higher off the ground, and also on the side so easier to access without the need to jack up the vehicle.

“It’s a bit worrying if they’re watching for people,” he added. “They obviously know what they’re doing.”

Simon has been given a quote of £450 to replace the catalytic converter, but says it will cost more than this in total as either side of it has also been damaged in the process of removing it.

Simon has reported the incident to the police online and is waiting to hear back.

The theft of catalytic converters from vehicles is becoming increasingly common, due to the precious metals they contain. Thieves are able to sell them on to make a profit on the rhodium, palladium and platinum within.

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In July, Devon and Cornwall Police confirmed they had seen a spate of incidents in the Plymouth area.

They said at that time that thieves were stealing the catalytic converters by jacking up vehicles, cutting them away with a power tool or saw, then lowering the vehicle and driving off in their own – all within around 60 seconds.

A spokesperson added that hybrids vehicles were often most at risk due to their metals being less corroded, as hybrids run on electric most of the time and so have cleaner emissions – with the Honda Jazz, Lexus RX and Toyota Auris/Prius most commonly targeted.

Newer vehicles can have a Catloc device fitted by a garage, which is made from a marine-grade stainless steel that can attach to a car using anti-tamper fixings, and comes with a marking kit to chemically etch a unique serial number into the catalytic converter.

However, while these can make theft more difficult it will not give 100% protection.