Police seek elderly victims of 'car-jacking'

DETECTIVES were last night trying to trace an elderly couple at the centre of a bizarre "suspicious" incident on a busy city road.

A major investigation was launched by Tayside Police on Wednesday night after the force received reports of what looked like a "car-jacking" in Dundee's Lochee Road.

An eyewitness told officers two men were deliberately standing in the middle of the carriageway, causing motorists to take evasive action, before one of the men was spotted jumping in front of a car containing an elderly couple.

The man was said to have got into the car through a rear door.

The car - described as an older-style maroon Volvo - was last seen continuing up Lochee Road towards the Lochee area.

Detectives were studying CCTV footage of the area yesterday to try to identify and trace the elderly couple who had been in the car.

An elderly man had been driving the car with a woman in the passenger seat.

A spokeswoman for Tayside Police stressed: "At this time there is no evidence to suggest that any 'car-jacking' has taken place. We have had no reports of stolen cars, missing persons, or any abandoned vehicles found.

''However, we are keen for the elderly couple seen driving the maroon-coloured, older-style Volvo to get in touch with us. We need to make sure that they are safe and well and that nothing untoward has happened to them."

She added: "'We would also like to hear from any other motorists who were in the area who may have seen the two men on the carriageway.

"Officers are in the process of reviewing both public and private CCTV footage in a bid to identify the elderly couple and the two men involved.''

The incident took place at around 6:30pm on Wednesday in Lochee Road, near its junction with Tullideph Road. The investigation began after a concerned woman who said she had seen what happened contacted Tayside Police.

She reported that an elderly couple had been driving in Lochee Road when a man had apparently jumped out in front of their car, before opening the rear door and climbing in.

The force spokeswoman explained: "About this time, a male was seen to attempt to enter a slow-moving maroon-coloured Volvo saloon car. The male was seen to hang from the door before entering the rear of the vehicle, which then proceeded slowly northwards on Lochee Road.

"This male was in the company of another male immediately prior to the incident and they had been standing in the middle of the carriageway, causing motorists to take evasive action. A Number 28 bus was stopped at the bus stop."

The man who entered the vehicle is described as being in his early twenties, approximately 5ft 6in, of scrawny build and with short dark hair.He was wearing a dark, possibly blue, tracksuit top, tan or light tracksuit bottoms and white trainers.

The second male is described as being in his late twenties, slightly taller than the other male, of a large build and almost bald. He was wearing a white tracksuit top and bottoms, which possibly had blue areas on the top.

The force spokeswoman said: "Anyone who remembers seeing either of the two men in the area, or anyone who has any information that may assist officers with their inquiries, should get in touch with Tayside Police on 0300 111 2222."