A woman has warned drivers to be vigilant after the catalytic converter on her car was stolen in broad daylight at a busy north Dublin car park.
It comes after a spate of catalytic converter thefts in the capital, with gardai confirming a number of recent reports from various areas.
The expensive part attached to the exhaust is taken by jacking the car up with some pro thieves capable of taking them in seconds.
The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, said her converter was taken swiftly, in the space of 60-90 seconds.
She believes they know exactly how to do it quickly in order to not draw attention.
She said: "They pump up the wheel and have a battery powered saw to remove the key part, and just take it off and get out quickly before anyone knows anything wrong happened.
"It was packed inside and it is a busy car park, but they do it in as quick as 60 seconds.
"They probably followed me in or drove around and found a good target."
The woman was driving a Toyota Prius, and hybrid cars tend to be the main targets for the theft, although other cases have also been recorded.
She urged the public to remain cautious when parking their cars, saying: "It's happening a lot more recently, not just here but all over Europe.
"Even if people do notice something is happening I would imagine it's hard to confront them as they are probably in groups.
"It's now going to take a month to get another, because of the sheer demand for them coming in.
"The people who are making them are working around the clock and still can't keep up with the demand.
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