Road-test car 'buyer' fled in VW Golf through Leeds with bonnet still up
A car thief who feigned interest in buying a VW Golf drove off from the owner with the bonnet still up.
Sam Barber asked the man to lift the bonnet so he could hear the engine after a test drive of the car.
But when the owner obliged, Barber put his foot down and fled Wortley Business Park.
The 28-year-old was handed a jail sentence at Leeds Crown Court this week.
Prosecutor Robert Galley said the car had been advertised for sale on Facebook Marketplace in 2023.
Barber reposended and met with the seller on January 17, taking the car for a test run.
When they returned to the trading estate, Barber asked to hear the engine so the owner obliged, but he then took off with his view severely restricted by the bonnet.
CCTV picked him as he drove off erratically down Upper Wortley Road. He was then seen driving in convoy with Barber’s own vehicle which was obviously driven by another person.
Barber was later identified on Facebook and arrested. His DNA was also matched. The other person involved was not traced.
During his police interview Barber claimed he paid £6,500 for the Golf. He has four previous convictions for 10 offences.
He is a serving prisoner at HMP Doncaster after the activation of a previous suspended sentence for driving while banned.
Barber, of Errington Avenue, Sheffield, admitted theft of a motor vehicle and dangerous driving for his latest offending.
Mitigating, Jazmine Lee said Barber was “struggling financially” at the time and had associating with a “bad crowd”.
She said: “He simply took the opportunity to take the car.”
The judge, Recorder Tom Little KC jailed him for nine months and gave him a 16-month driving ban.