Criminals who stole a £350,000 Rolls-Royce were caught out after they parked the luxurious vehicle illegally in the capital.
A criminal gang who stole the car from the Glasgow home of pizza mogul Domenico Crolla left the motor in a private parking space. The owner of the private spot alerted Domenico to its whereabouts after mistakenly messaging another member of the Crolla family, asking: “Why is your Rolls-Royce parked on my parking space?”
The family member instantly recognised that the car belonged to Domenico, who was abroad on a business trip to America. The Daily Record had previously reported that the criminal gang members had forced their way into Domenico and his wife Genny’s home in Glasgow’s south side.
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The thieves were able to make off with the Rolls-Royce and a black Ferrari Scaglietti which was worth more than £100,000. A family source revealed how Domenico finally got his car back, saying: “Domenico was shocked to hear from another Crolla that the car had popped up on Brunswick Street in Edinburgh, complete with two parking tickets and a furious owner of the parking space.
“Because the car has a registration with the ‘Crolla’ name, the chap assumed it belonged to the Edinburgh Crollas and he phoned them up. He thought it was just a Flash Harry thing to do but it ended up being a completely unexpected twist in the story.”
The 57-year-old Domenico is known globally for being a top pizza maker and he has made famous pizza art depicting celebrities including the Queen and Simon Cowell. He had feared that the stolen vehicles would have been shipped abroad after being stolen to order by a sophisticated crime group but police were able to recover both cars from the capital.
The source said: “The fact the cars were both found with their proper registrations possibly suggests that the thieves got cold feet. It’s hard to think they were going back to retrieve the car at any point.
“It looked like the outset like a very professional job, as they used a grinder to get through security gates and they got away quickly after finding the car keys in the home. But at the end of the day, they were driving in Edinburgh with a very rare, sparkling white Rolls-Royce, which would be utterly impossible to sell in the UK. It looks like it was a highly professional job up to the final stages.”
Domenico, owner of Glasgow’s Oro restaurant, earlier told the Record he was shocked at the crime, which happened the day after he and Genny flew to New York. He became aware of the theft after an alarm on the Rolls-Royce security app on his mobile.
Police have confirmed both cars have been recovered in Edinburgh. Detective Inspector Gary Cassidy said both cars were seen on the M8 heading to Edinburgh around 9pm on Tuesday. He appealed for witnesses.
It’s understood the vehicles will be thoroughly searched and analysed by forensics experts at specialist car crime facilities.
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