Police investigating large Forres and Deskford fuel thefts
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POLICE have confirmed that they are looking into two rural fuel thefts.
At one site off the A940, south of Forres, up to 1000 litres of heating oil was stolen from a fuel tank.
The theft occurred between 9am on February 28 and 9pm on March, 3, 2023.
A further theft took place from a rural site near Deskford, Cullen.
Diesel worth £1000 was stolen from a tank along with some tools.
The incident occured between 4pm on February 27 and 3pm on February, 28, 2023.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Enquiries are ongoing into a report of thefts of fuel which occurred between Tuesday 28 February 2023 and 7 March 2023 in the Deskford and Forres areas.
"We would like to remind owners of both residential and business premises to ensure oil tanks are locked, alarmed if installed and also covered by lighting to deter opportunistic thieves.”
North East Division crime reduction officer Constable Russell gave advice to people living in rural areas about how to keep themselves safe.
He said: "If working in remote areas, ensure all tools and fuel are locked away out of sight in secure storage units.
"Ensure all doors are of solid construction with suitable locks or a closed shackle padlock fitted.
"Consider using CCTV or even 4G CCTV cameras to monitor remote sites and be alerted to any intruders.
"Several devices are now on the market to reduce such crimes, such as anti-siphoning devices and fuel tank alarms.
"Check tank levels regularly and report any suspicious activity to the Police."
Anyone with information can contact the Police on 101 or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 quoting reference 1234 of March 7, 2023 and 1931 of February 28, 2023.
