South Warwickshire family heartbroken after 'beautifully crafted' ride-on model cars stolen from lockup

The two beautifully made model cars had been in the Whyman family for over 17 years before they were taken from their lock-up in Northend.

They were created by Jeremy Whyman, a retired dentist passionate about carpentry, for his two grandchildren when they were toddlers.

It took Jeremy around six months each to build the cars, which were fitted with golf buggy motors and provided the children with hours of fun driving around the garden.

Both the model blue Land Rover Defender and green Jeep had recently been placed in a lockup to be kept safe while Jeremy and his wife were moving house.

The Whymans had hoped that the two cars would be passed on to the next generation of the family when their grandchildren, who are now adults, had their kids.

However, they have been left heartbroken after the two priceless cars were stolen from them overnight on April 11.

Jeremy’s son Andy Whyman said: “My mum and dad are moving house, so we have been storing stuff in the lock-up.

“We moved the cars into the lockup six months ago, nobody knew they were in there, but they were at the front and visible when the lock-up door was opened.

“So somebody at some point must have walked past when it was open and seen them, but it’s odd because it is a small horseshoe-shaped lock-up in a quiet rural village.”

Andy says that his lock-up was the only one broken into that night and the cars were the only items taken from his packed-out lock-up.

The family has reported the incident to Warwickshire Police and has spread word of the theft amongst their village community but have yet to locate the two cars.

Andy added: “This has hit us and the village quite hard. We live in a very close rural community with a great spirit, and people can not believe such a blatant theft has happened right in the middle of the village.

“All the thieves were interested in were the two cars; they didn’t even rummage around in the lock-up to see what else was in there. So somebody knew that they were in there, and that was all they were interested in taking.”

Due to the cars having golf buggy motors installed in them, they were able to traverse muddy fields and hit speeds of around six or seven miles an hour.

Although priceless to the family, it is believed that such ride-on toy vehicles can be worth up to £3,000 to £4,000 each.

Andy said: “The cars mean a lot to the family; my dad was from a family of dentists, but he was always a keen woodworker and carpenter.

"When my daughter was three, he gave her a beautifully carved wooden rocking horse for her to play with for a few years and then pass down to her kids when she had them.

“So when my son was three, he gave him the Land Rover, and his cousin received the Jeep; with the same logic to be passed down. They were built as my father’s legacy and very much as heirlooms."

A spokesperson for Warwickshire Police said: “On 13 April, we received a report of a burglary from an outbuilding at a property on Malthouse Close in Northend, Southam.

Two electric ride-on cars for children are understood to have been taken from the outbuilding sometime between 9am and 11am on 11 April.”

Police enquiries are ongoing and if anyone has any information they can report it to the police quoting crime number 23/16240/25.