Yahoo News Car cannibals strip doctor's Toyota Yaris as he watched game at St Andrew's
A doctor is relying on lifts to get to work after his car was stripped by thieves as he watched his team play at St Andrew's. Dr Tim Merchant parked his Toyota Yaris on Garrison Street, Bordesley, after travelling from Norwich to support his team as they played Blues on Saturday, May 4.
After the 1-0 defeat, Dr Merchant returned to find his car had had been targeted by thieves who had smashed a window, removed the bonnet, ripped out parts and left wires hanging out. He was stranded for four hours by the kerbside as he contacted the police and his insurer before heading home on the train.
The car was loaded onto a recovery truck and transported to a garage. Kind friends, associates and even strangers have offered him lifts so he can get to work in urgent community care.
Dr Merchant, 36, said he had researched places to park in Birmingham before the match but his preferred car park was not available. He thought Garrison Street would be OK as there were Mercedes, Teslas and other high end motors parked there.
He said when he returned, he initially didn't 'recognise' his one-year-old car. He said: "The car was completely wrecked.
"The entire bonnet had been removed. The front driver's window had been smashed, the bonnet gone and all the electricals hanging out.
"I felt afraid, I was in a city I didn't know. After I had spoken to the police, I had lots of people, both Norwich and Birmingham City fans, come and support me.
"People offered me a bottle of water and told me they had seen others in a similar situation. I was approached by the owner of a local garage who had CCTV of the incident. I could almost see my car being worked on and destroyed.
"Someone approached in a black Volkswagen and after four minutes, pulls away." Dr Merchant also realised he had arrived back at his car just five minutes after the thieves struck. "I'm grateful I missed them', he added fearing they could have been armed with a weapon.
His insurer sent a recovery vehicle to take his damaged vehicle away and dropped Dr Merchant off at the nearest railway station where he started his journey back to Norwich.
Dr Merchant was left relying on lifts so he could get to work today, Tuesday, May 7. A friend also launched a GoFundMe to pay for the £700 excess on his car. After raising £638, the appeal closed, with Dr Merchant thanking everyone for their kindness.
A West Midlands Police spokesperson told the BBC: "We are studying CCTV footage and would appeal for anyone with any information to please contact us. When [vehicle crime] happens, we will follow lines of inquiry and work to identify and arrest offenders. "We’re also committed to arresting those involved in chop shops and others involved in the illegal trade in spare parts."
