Organised crime turns to Xbox
Iain Thomson |
Nov 28, 2006 11:51 AM
Millions of pounds worth of consoles stolen in two hijackings.
Millions of pounds worth of consoles stolen in two hijackings.
Staffordshire Police have reported that XBox 360 consoles worth around $5m (£2m) were stolen from a lorry last week.
The police say a gang of three men stopped a lorry on the A38 near Lichfield by convincing the driver that there was something caught under the wheels of his vehicle. When he stopped they dragged him from the cab and beat him, before driving off with their haul.
The 46-year-old driver was taken to hospital for treatment of his injuries. The white lorry was later found abandoned and empty of its cargo of 2,500 gaming consoles.
Police are hunting three men, who were driving a Range Rover and Rover saloon. This is the second robbery in a month from the same depot, which is run by Hellmann Worldwide Logistics. In the previous heist a trailer of Xboxes worth $1.2m was stolen, leading to speculation that an organised gang has targeted the firm because of its involvement with shipping the games consoles.
Calls to Hellmann Worldwide Logistics were not returned at time of publication.