Asian Car Storage owner steals £50k Porsche

An Asian man was reported to have stolen a £50,000 Porsche belonging to a businessman who left the country for a holiday.

Businessman Arslan Khan left the car where he thought there was a: “Protected haven for automobiles.”

30-year-old Umair Bhatti, from West Sussex, was that protection. He drove away with the black Porsche SPO Sports Model 912. He took the car from an underground car park near the London Eye.

Bhatti pleaded guilty to the theft of a motor car.

The car was stored by Khan when he left for his holiday. He also met Bhatti at an airport and handed over his car via an online website, Garaged.com.

A storage owner, Bhatti rented out parking spaces in the car park to take care of vehicles people left whilst they went abroad. He was given the Porsche by Khan to look after.

Robert Chambers, prosecuting told the Camberwell Green Magistrates Court of Bhatti’s plan. He applied to DVLA requesting a change of ownership of the car. Chambers said:

“The owner of the car received a letter on February 17 notifying him and giving him 14 days to respond.”

Owner Khan was forced to return to the country for a while. He then tried to move his car but was unsuccessful since Bhatti simply removed his handwritten note and had the car towed away.

It was said that Bhatti had sold the car to pay off building debts. Chambers said: “It appears the vehicle has been sold on by the defendant.”

The 30-year-old tried to defend himself, stating that he had bought the car from Khan for £20,000.

However, later he admitted to the theft. He had debts due to building works and struggled to pay them off. By selling Khan’s Porsche he would be able to pay these back.

While a charge of fraud due to false representation has been dropped, Bhatti is due to be sentenced at the Inner London Crown Court at a later date.