CCTV has caught the moment a group of men rummaged around a parked car in Oldham - then one poured a fizzy drink all over the interior.
Footage from a street in Royton shows three males trying the door handles of Tim Whiting’s Seat Leon Cupra.
Finding it unlocked, they rummage around inside, opening the boot and checking all storage compartments, but Tim says there were no valuables left in the car.
Two of the men are shown to leave the vehicle, before the third retrieves a bottle of fizzy drink from the boot and unscrews the lid.
He then empties the bottle onto the seats and dashboard of the Seat, before the three men run away.
The incident happened in the early hours of the morning on Monday 23rd February, after Tim said he forgot to lock the car after ‘letting his guard down’.
An expensive deep clean to remove the stains and the liquid is now required on the car, which is used by Tim's partner.
“The car needs a full valet now,” the Royton resident told the M.E.N., adding that the men involved need to ‘learn some respect’.
“The heater controls are messed up at the moment as well, but we’re hoping it will dry out.
"We’re hoping for no long-term damage.”
The vandals were caught in the act by one of Tim’s neighbours, who swiftly alerted the police who were there ‘in minutes’.
“There was a great response from the police,” Tim said.
“My neighbour heard them in my car and called 999 - they only missed the men by minutes.
“Unfortunately the police couldn’t find them in the end and the CCTV footage wasn’t good enough to identify them.”
He says he doesn’t want his street address to be published for security reasons, but is encouraging people to check whether their car door is locked every night to ensure unwanted people can’t get inside.
“You almost expect someone to be going through your car these days if you forget to lock it - but for someone to pour pop all over it just really p***ed me off, if you’ll excuse my language,” he said.
“It’s really not a nice feeling knowing that they must be about most nights looking for the opportunity to strike on cars like this.
“It’s a massive wake-up call to double-check all the doors every night.”
After posting the CCTV footage in a local Facebook group to warn people about the crime, Tim at least found some humour in the situation, adding: “at least I know now I’m supposed to lock it.”
A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police said officers were called at 12.30am on Tuesday 23 February to a report of three offenders gaining entry into an unsecured vehicle.
Officers were also called shortly afterwards at around 12.50am to a report of three men unsuccessfully trying the door handle of another vehicle on the same street, before walking off towards the Cavendish Way area, according to GMP.
"These two incidents are believed to be linked," they said.
"The offenders have been described as three men aged between 17 and 25, and between 5ft 8 and 6ft tall, all with skinny medium builds and their hoods up. One is believed to have been wearing a bubble jacket.
"Nothing is understood to have been stolen from either vehicle.
"No arrests have been made and anyone with information is asked to call 101 quoting incident 85 of 23/02/2021. Details can be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111."
