THOUSANDS of pounds worth of power tools have been snatched by smash-and grab thieves in Newton Abbot.

The overnight blitz on works vans was executed between March 2-4 with attacks reported in Quay Road, Templers Road, Southernhay and Salisbury Road.

A police spokesman said today (Thursday, March 9): ‘On each occasion vans were broken into and valuable power tools and hand tools worth thousands of pounds were stolen.

‘The thieves sorted through numerous items to steal specific items, mainly drills batteries, charges and powered saws.’

Offenders also stole CCTV camera equipment from some of the vehicles. One of the Transit vans had the driver’s door-lock forced, while another had a window removed for thieves to get inside and open the back doors.

The other two were broken into by unknown means. Officers probing the string of thefts are appealing for information from anyone who saw or heard anything suspicious around any of the targeted vans areas at the time of the offences.

The Salisbury Road theft happened overnight on March 3-4 while the other three were March 2-3. Anyone offered second-hand power tools for sale in the area should contact police on 101 or via [email protected].

The crime reference is CR/015682/17.