A former Monifieth man whose grandfather was a jute baron in Dundee is helping people get their stolen property back.
Hugh Jefferson (68) and his wife Angela (62) have set up www.itsbeennicked.co.uk, with the aim of reuniting robbery victims with their possessions.
The couple, who live in Herefordshire, got the idea after suffering several break-ins and thefts from their farm, including losing a Land Rover, a horse trailer and various garden ornaments.
“We were fed up because if you telephone the police you get an incident number and then nothing else, end of story, apart from when they phone you up and offer counselling, and of course I just say no,” he said.
“When the horse trailer was stolen, it took three weeks for the police to put it up on their website.
“The way this website works is basically people advertise their stolen goods and if people have been offered things at a car boot sale or someone comes up your drive and offers to sell you a nice little Alfa Romeo or something, then it will arouse your suspicions and you can check it on the site.
“It’s national so it’s not constricted by any police borders but it’s the public working with the police, and maybe it gives people a chance to fight back.
“If you’ve lost anything you value, you’re upset about it and you also don’t get the full value back on the insurance.
“The site is secure and it’s been approved by the police, you can check the incident number and there’s a telephone number of the local police station where it was stolen.”
They are also working with insurance companies.
Mr Jefferson was born in Dundee, and educated in Monifieth until he was eight, when his parents moved away due to his father being in the army.
“But I used to go back to Dundee and stay with my grandparents.
“My grandad was Thomas Bonar of Thomas Bonar Jute Merchants, which later became Bonar Long.”
Among the other items listed on the website so far are a pony, £15,000 worth of cigarettes and a Nissan sports car.