Off-road rage

Mike Dixon

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CLASSIC car thieves went the extra mile in an audacious robbery which left the devastated owner scratching his head.

Vehicle victim Mike Dixon says it would have taken at least four strong men to steal his precious 1970 Mk1 Ford Escort Mexico as it had no wheels and they had to negotiate a 3ft-high grass verge to make their getaway.

Mike — who is offering a £1,000 reward for the safe return of his very rare pride and joy — believes it must have been carried from his lock-up in Shaw under the cover of darkness and loaded on to a trailer but as yet there are no clues as to who the culprits are.

The crime comes just weeks after another Mk1 Ford Escort was taken in a separate raid in Springhead when thieves barricaded a man and his partner in their home and stole his £10,000 car from the driveway.

Mike (44), from Grotton, says he only discovered the Escort — which he bought seven years ago — had been stolen after he was told by the locksmith brought in to replace the garage door lock which had been tampered with.

He explained that at the same time as being told there was possible foul play at the garage, his partner Sarah Southern had to be rushed into hospital for an emergency caesarean to deliver their first, long-awaited child so the car had to take a back seat.

“The landlord rang me to say the lock had been tampered with, I couldn’t get in with my keys so I rang a locksmith and then we had to dash off to hospital,” said Mike, a commercial paint sprayer.

“I asked him later if my car and a van I keep in there was OK and he said there was a van but no car. I drove down there a bit like a maniac.

“This is a car which I bought for £2,000, have spent £7,000 on and many hours restoring over the last three to four years. It is a replica of the world’s most successful rally car and there are not many left. It’s worth about £20,000 fully restored so to say I’m gutted is an understatement.

Anyone with information on its whereabouts should call 07709-452 417 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800-555 111.
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