Couple forced to steal back their own car after police 'too stretched' to investigate - despite Airtag showing location

9 June 2025, 11:01 | Updated: 9 June 2025, 11:59

A couple who had their Jaguar car stolen from outside their home have been forced to steal back their own vehicle after police were 'too stretched' to investigate.

Theives stole the vehicle from outside the home of Mia Forbes Pirie, 48, and Mark Simpson, 62, in Brook Green, west London, during the early hours of Wednesday morning.

But unbeknownst to the thieves, the Jaguar E-Pace was fitted with a 'ghost immobiliser' - a type of immobiliser which required certain buttons to be pressed on the car's control in order to activate the vehicle.

Not only that, but Airtags inside the vehicle pinged shortly after 3.20am, showing the couple the vehicle's exact location - just a few miles away in Chiswick.

Upon dialling 999 - and despite knowing the car's whereabouts, the couple were told by the Metropolitan Police that they couldn't confirm when they would be able to investigate.

It's a response that led the couple to take matters into their own hands.

The couple made the four-mile drive to vehicle's last known location, spotting the car on a quiet backstreet - with its interior and carpets ripped apart by thieves trying to access the central wiring.

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The car, which sold for around £46,000 new in 2024, had a series of additional security features fitted after the couple had previous vehicles stolen.

It's believe the operation was “reasonably sophisticated” and likely involved the use of a flat-bed truck to transport the immobilised vehicle.

Neighbours later revealed they had heard unusual noises overnight, shortly before the couple noticed the car had vanished.

Sharing the story on LinkedIn, Ms Pirie, a former solicitor, explained that it was “kind of fun” stealing back their own vehicle in the overnight operation.

However, she added that “if there are no consequences [to committing a crime], what is the incentive for people not to do more of this?”

In the hours that followed the vehicle's recovery, police did contact the couple.

The former solicitor told The Times that she sympathised with the force, explaining the Met was clearly overstretched and working at capacity.

Forbes Pirie said: “Since we’ve found it lots of people have touched the car and the police say that they’re going to look underneath the carpets and at the fuse box to see if there are prints there.

"But it wouldn’t have cost very much for them to tell us not to touch anything. That’s the one criticism I have.

“The police are under-resourced and it’s a shame.

"But if there ­aren’t any consequences to people stealing cars or a lot of the other crimes where there aren’t any consequences, then I don’t really see what the deterrent is to stop people from doing it more.”