Exhaust thief hits commuter

A COMMUTER was the victim of vandalism when the exhaust pipe of his car was sawn off. David Smith of Steeple Morden parked his silver Lexus RX300 4x4 at a temporary overflow car park at Ashwell and Morden railway station in Odsey on Friday, between 8.40am

A COMMUTER was the victim of vandalism when the exhaust pipe of his car was sawn off.

David Smith of Steeple Morden parked his silver Lexus RX300 4x4 at a temporary overflow car park at Ashwell and Morden railway station in Odsey on Friday, between 8.40am and 7pm.

He said: "I got back to my car, started the engine and heard a noise. I got out my vehicle to find that someone had sawn off the catalytic converter under my car."

"It's a bizarre incident and is going to cost me £2,000 to have it fixed.

"I informed my garage and they had never heard of this before, so I want to warn people just in case the offender thinks it's a good way of making money."

The land opposite the Jester Hotel has been temporarily used as an overflow car park for commuters for the past year, after a campaign by county councillor Linda Oliver.

Cllr Oliver said: "Odsey is such a quiet area so I'm taken aback by such a strange offence.

"It's appalling. But we are doing all we can to move the new facility along and the parish council is heavily involved in providing the best arrangements for our residents."

The landowner has received planning permission to use the land as a permanent car park for commuters, and CCTV will be part of the plan.

A Cambridgeshire police spokesman said: "We would like to appeal for witnesses.

"Anyone who saw anything suspicious should call the police on 0845 456 4564.