Catalytic converter thieves target cars in Bolton ­— trapping one man in his home

The 48-year-old alerted by his home security system rushed downstairs to confront the two-strong gang ­— but one of the hooded thieves runs to the porch door and forces the door shut, realising they had been rumbled.

The man told The Bolton News he could only look on as a thief crawled under the vehicle, which has been jacked up, to remove the catalytic converter – wanted for its precious metals – in less than two minutes before escaping in a waiting getaway car.

(Thieves strike in Great Lever)

The thieves struck at 5am on Tuesday in Great Lever.

And at least two cars were targeted, the Toyota Hybrid belonging to the 48-year-old and a Lexus Hybrid, both parked outside homes in the Newport Road and Walker Avenue area.

Police say there are investigating but no arrests have been made.

The man, who does not want to be identified, said: “I have a video doorbell and got a notification on my phone.

" I looked out of the window and saw these two guys. I knew straight away they were after my catalytic converter.

“I grabbed my keys and rushed down and tried opening the front door but one of the guys noticed I was at the front door and held on to it with their full body weight and stopped me from getting out to intervene."

He said he tried to get out of the house through another door, but in his panic could not find the right keys.

"By the time I actually opened it they had already taken the cat converter and drove off, It didn’t them long," he said.

(Terfifying moment a thief keeps the houseowner at bay)

The married man, who works for a double glazing company, said he had heard about catalytic converter being stolen and parked the driver side close to the fence as possible to prevent such thefts

He said: “I took as many precautions as I could but it was not enough.

“I happened to a resident two streets away right after it happened to my.

"I wasn't scared, I was shocked. What I wanted to do was to scare them off but I could not open the door , I wanted to try and stop them.

“But even with cameras and things like that it does not bother them, they will just take what they want.

“My wife drives the car everyday to work, but she has to get one of her work colleagues to pick her up until the car is sorted."

Now he faces a bill for hundreds of pounds.

He said: "What really annoys me , people like that can get away with doing things like that and we have to fork out for it.

“I work hard to earn a living and my wife is the same and we are not on big salaries and now I have to fork out God knows how much and it’s not right.”

(Thieves strike at 5am in Great Lever)

The victim of the other theft, which happened just two streets away, said: “Judging how fast these thieves forcefully obtained these expensive catalytic converters it won’t be long until most of Bolton Hybrid cars will be scarce of catalytic converters."

He was alerted by the car alarm but by the time his family had realised what had happened the thieves had fled.

He is calling on authorities to crackdown on the crime and provide "reassurance for the people who are frightened by such attacks".

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: "Both reports detailed a theft from a motor vehicle. Enquiries are on-going into both. No arrests have been made."