Almost £100,000 worth of motors have been taken from properties across the north-east after car thieves carried out two night-time raids.
The joyriders broke into the homes at Aberdeen and Stonehaven during the hours of darkness on Saturday and Sunday while the owners were upstairs asleep.
They made off with a total of four cars and a loot of valuables they had taken from inside the properties.
Last night one victim said he was “sickened” and “disgusted” by what had happened.
Michael Brown, 65, of Alpen Place, Stoneywood, Aberdeen, said he and his wife Davina, 55, had been in bed at the time of their break in, which happened overnight on Sunday into the early hours of Monday.
His black Range Rover TDV8 and his wife’s white Audi A5 convertible were taken along with watches, Ipads, wallets, money and credit cards.
Mr Brown, a company director, said he had heard something downstairs in the middle of the night but assumed it was his son coming home late.
He said it was not until the morning, when he went downstairs, he noticed all the lights were on and his cars, worth around £70,000, were both gone.
He said: “We are just totally sickened and disgusted. This is something you hear happening to other people but you don’t expect it will ever happen to you.
“I suspect whoever took it knew what they were coming for. They didn’t come upstairs, everything that was taken was stolen from downstairs. Our cars have still not been recovered.”
A police spokesman last night confirmed officers were searching for the thieves who targeted Mr and Mrs Brown.
He added that a black Volkswagen Golf and a white Mazda 3 were also taken from an address at Glenury Cerscent, Stonehaven, in the early hours of Sunday.
PC Steven Inglis, of the Stonehaven community policing team said: “While officers continue to focus on detecting and deterring those who engage in criminal activity we encourage the public to do all they can to protect themselves from becoming a victim of opportunistic thieves.
“This includes making sure doors and windows are locked and that vehicles are also secured.
“Stonehaven and Aberdeenshire has a relatively low level of crime but that does not mean we should be complacent when securing property and valuables.
“We would also ask that the public report any sightings of suspicious vehicles or activity to the police immediately.
“Where possible also note the vehicle registration number, the number and description of occupants and the last known direction of travel for the vehicle.”