Abandoned car smashed up and torched

The black Peugeot was found by police earlier this month in a gravel car park in Selkirk Grove, Pemberton, and had been largely burnt out. It has since been recovered and inquiries are ongoing to find the owner.

But Coun Jeanette Prescott, representative for the Pemberton ward, says the now destroyed vehicle had been left on the car park for a matter of weeks before the mindless act was committed.

It is these delays and the lack of anyone taking control which left the councillor frustrated.

“Someone had a responsibility to move it, it’s not fair on the residents around here,” said Coun Prescott.

“This burnt out car, we are really concerned about it because at the end of the day, people had to look at that when they open their doors.

“We hoped it would be removed before it was smashed up and burned. It’s not acceptable. I don’t know whether they can locate who it belongs to, it had been there for a couple of weeks.”

She added: “We’d had reports of it being abandoned weeks beforehand. Obviously they were trying to find out who it belonged to, but now there’s nothing left of it. It’s quite shocking.”

Coun Prescott also expressed concern for the safety of local residents during such incidents, saying: “It mustn’t half have gone up in a big bang in front of their houses. It must have been frightening for them.

“Kids also have to walk past that on their way to school.”