GMP detain carjacker minutes after committing burglary in Rochdale

The stolen car was recovered by police and a man was arrested

Less than 20 minutes after a call was received about a burglary in action, officers on patrol from GMP's Roads Policing Unit found the stolen car nearby being driven by the suspects.

In the early hours of Thursday 27 February 2025, a burglary was reported to have taken place at a property on Ennerdale Road in Middleton and a CUPRA Formentor had been stolen.

Within minutes, 18 precisely, officers witnessed the car and following a short pursuit, a 19-year-old was left trapped in the vehicle by his accomplice and arrested on suspicion of burglary and theft of a motor vehicle. He remains in custody for questioning.

The car was subsequently recovered and despite having minor damage was returned to the owner on Thursday.

Enquiries are continuing to track down the second suspect.

PC Pilkington from the GMP Roads Policing Unit who conducted the arrest said: “This is a prime example of the work we are doing on a daily basis to catch offenders in the act. As a specialised unit we are constantly patrolling the roads across the whole of Greater Manchester and intend to respond to incidents as quickly as we can with the resources at our disposal.

“As we’ve seen on this occasion, that quick action from the report coming into us and then assisting response colleagues with the incident means we have had another positive result.

“We understand the distress being the victim of a burglary can have and that is why we are seeing decreases in key areas, with theft of motor vehicle incidents decreasing by nearly a fifth (18%) this year (in 2025).”

Anyone with information that can help with ongoing enquiries linked to the suspects and other potential incidents are asked to call 101 quoting incident 296 of 27/02/2025.