Tow-truck gang hurl dog from stolen car

Metal raiders hurled a pensioner's pet dog from a car after loading the vehicle onto a tow-truck in a daylight swoop in the Black Country.

Retired wages clerk Phyllis Rowley today described her dismay at the loss of her "lifeline" vehicle.

She had only been away from her car in Chapel Street, Brierley Hill, for a few minutes when it was winched off the road by the thieves.

The 73-year-old had left beloved companion Sam in the car and she said the 12-year-old collie cross, found wandering around a short time later, had been "traumatised" by his ordeal.

The Express & Star revealed at the weekend thieves posing as tow-truck drivers had taken up to 30 cars from homes and car parks in the Black Country before selling them as scrap.

They use flat bed lorries and lifting equipment to remove vehicles in the middle of the day. Old cars are targeted so as not to arouse suspicion at scrap yards.

Widow Mrs Rowley was working as a volunteer for the Dudley Federation of Tenants and Residents Associations when her S-reg Fiesta was stolen.

"I parked my car at 10am, walked across the road and two minutes later the car had gone," Mrs Rowley, of Russells Hall, Dudley, said.

"They would have had to break into the car to get the dog out.

"Someone from the estate found him wandering round and he was very traumatised."

Mrs Rowley added: "That car was my lifeline. I go to an awful lot of meetings with my volunteer work and now I have got to rely on colleagues to take me.

"I'm a very independent person and I don't like having to rely on other people."

As well as Brierley Hill, the Lye and Cradley areas of Dudley have been targeted. Similar thefts are under investigation in Sandwell.

Police believe the cars are destined for unscrupulous scrap dealers.

Mrs Rowley spoke about her trauma, which happened a few weeks ago, after reading about the tow-truck gangs. Her car has not been traced