Crime: Car theft comes home to roost

Nearly two in five vehicle crimes are committed in the road outside the victim's home, a survey claimed yesterday. Stereos were the main target of thieves, who mainly gained access to them through the car windows, the report showed.

Most car crime victims were male, with 63 per cent of them in the 25- 35 age group, said the survey, by the Crime Foundation.

The survey showed that: 67 per cent of all women victims were aged between 26 and 50 years; 28 per cent of car crime victims had also been victims of similar offences in the previous 12 months; 18 per cent of victims had also suffered from other crimes, ranging from grievous bodily harm to burglary, in the previous 12 months.