Police make two arrests in hunt for prolific fuel thieves

Since January 6, Transit vans with false plates have pulled up at stations in East Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire 29 times, and then left without paying, racking up a bill of more than £3,000.

Last week a driver and a passenger in a white Transit van were stopped by police minutes after making off from a petrol station in Goole without paying.

Inside the van – which turned out to have been stolen in a break-in at Woodmansey at the end of January – was over 100 litres of fuel in a large container.

They have been released on police bail pending further inquiries.

A police spokeswoman said: “We strongly suspect at least two Transit-style vans have been used across the force to commit the fuel thefts, one being a white Transit-style van and the second being a silver Transit-style van.

“On all occasions the vans have approached the forecourt of the petrol station, filled the vehicle up and driven away, without offering payment. The vans were all on a variety of false plates at the time.

“We have people on bail. No one has been charged and we still need people to come forward with information as the investigation is ongoing.”

Unusually most of the thefts took place one after the other.

On one occasion the thieves travelled from as far away as Goole to Grimsby and then from Grimsby to Bridlington.

Humberside Police are on 101.