Police seek assistance in car thefts from Gympie and Sunshine Coast

Detectives are seeking help identifying two men who may be able to help their investigations into a number of car thefts across Gympie and the Sunshine Coast. Watch the video.

Police across Gympie and the Sunshine Coast are seeking public help over a series of car thefts allegedly carried out by a man claiming he wants to buy them using a fake profile.

The first reported theft was a Subaru WRX swiped from a Southside home after being advertised for sale on social media.

Police said that about 3pm on October 14 the WRX was stolen when it taken for a test drive.

It was located at Gympie Connection Rd, on the other side of the city, several hours later.

Similar thefts have occurred at other Gympie addresses on October 15 and October 20, at Buderim on November 3, and Birtinya on November 8.

Detective are investigating a number of car thefts across Gympie and the Sunshine Coast by a man On Friday police released CCTV footage of a men they believe may be able to help them with their inquiries, and asked anyone who may be able to assist to contact officers.

Police said investigations showed a man was using fake Facebook profiles to respond to online advertisements.

He was then meeting the seller, taking the cars for a test drive and not coming back.

On Friday police released CCTV footage of men they believe may be able to help them with their inquiries, and asked anyone who may be able to assist to contact officers.

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The investigations are into a series of thefts in which cars being advertised online are being taken for test drives, and not returned. Police say the men in this CCTV footage may be able to help with their inquiries.

They made a call for anyone else who has had a similar experience as the earlier thefts.

Police urged anyone selling cars online to follow safety advice from groups like the Australia Cyber Security Centre, avoiding meeting buyers or sellers at people’s homes, and to record details of the person you are meeting including name, email address, phone number and registration numbers.

Investigating the buyer or seller before meeting in person was another key step, as pages with only a few followers or had been newly created may indicate the profiles are fake.

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