Man Dies After Going Under Car To Steal Catalytic Converter

WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT

A man was crushed to death as he tried to steal a catalytic converter from a car that he was lying underneath.

An inquest was told how Daniel Stephens was found beneath the BMW which was situated in a car park in Cymmer, Rhondda Cynon Taf.

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Mr Stephens, 25, passed away from his injuries after the jack he was using to hold the car up collapsed.

The car's owner, Russel Seldon, gave evidence during the hearing and explained how he could see Mr Stephens' legs coming from under his vehicle.

In a statement read to the court, Mr Seldon said: "I walked across the street from my house to my car which was in the small car park opposite.

"I saw a pair of legs sticking out from under the car, wearing dark coloured bottoms and trainers. I called out and pulled on the person's leg to see if they were okay, but there was no response."

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Mr Stephens, from Blaenavon, Torfaen, was discovered on 12 August 2020 at 6am and the emergency services were called.

PC Leah Jeffries told the inquest that Mr Stephens was 'cold and stiff' and she could see that his 'chest was crushed' as the car was raised off his body. That was the moment she also noticed a jack and torch.

Attempting to explain the reasons behind Mr Stephen's doing what he did, his friend Aron Godfrey said he needed money for a court case that he was involved in to try and get more access to his children.

Mr Godfrey says he told his mate 'not to do anything stupid' but added that Mr Stephens planned to steal a catalytic converter because he knew he could sell it.

In a statement read to the coroner, Mr Godfrey said: "He had spoken about stealing a catalytic converter from a BMW he had seen in Porth.

"He knew it would be worth around £500 - but I told him not to do anything stupid or steal anything."

Mr Godfrey explained how his friend had gone to the car park where the BMW was situated at around 1am.

When he woke up at 5am and realised Mr Stephens hadn't returned he drove to the place and saw that police were already at the scene so turned around.

Toxicology reports found low levels of Tramadol and alcohol in his blood and his cause of death was determined as 'crush asphyxia'.

Coroner Rachel Knight reached a conclusion of accidental death and told Mr Stephens' family: "It is evident he is greatly missed by many people."

Topics: UK News, News, No-Article-Matching, Car, UK

Rebecca Shepherd

I'm Becky - a journalist at LADbible. I graduated with a First Class BA in Journalism before going on to cover criminal court cases, medical tribunals and breaking news for the national media - which inevitably and eventually became as glum as it sounds. Can often be found rocking a bag for life - which I made a 'thing' way before Rihanna. You can contact me at [email protected]

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