Gardaí are investigating whether two luxury cars stolen in south Dublin were taken by thieves using computer software to over-ride the vehicles' security systems.
The thefts may be the first of their kind in Ireland where criminals have overcome keyless entry and ignition systems using laptops.
Criminals are believed to have used such techniques in mainland Europe, but as yet the Garda have not come across it here.
However, Detective Sergeant Finbar Garland of the Garda Stolen Vehicle Unit told The Irish Times it may only be a matter of time before it happens in the Republic. "We haven't had evidence of it yet that people are using technology to steal cars," he said. "But we can't rule it out."
"There are a couple of car thieves boasting they can do it, but we haven't caught anybody or come across equipment from any arrests or searches," he added. "But if it is out there on mainland Europe it is inevitable that it will happen here."
Garland believes it may already have happened with the recent thefts of two luxury cars in Dublin. "There are one or two cars we have our suspicions about," he added.
The cars in question are high-value new cars stolen recently in the Dublin 4 area. In both cases the owner reported no key "fobs" missing, and the manufacturers in both cases confirmed that no duplicates had been issued. The cars, worth in the region of €100,000 each, have not been found, Garland said.
The vast majority of stolen cars of any value are taken by theives using keys. Sometimes they will defraud car manufacturers and obtain duplicate keys while on other occasions they will break into houses in a search for keys.
The use of a laptop computer and software is the latest method being turned to by car criminals. They typically target the car in a secluded area and when they know the car's owner will be away from it for some time.
It is believed they mimic the presence of a "key fob" necessary to open and start the vehicle.
The process can take 20 minutes or more to complete.
In one of the most high-profile examples, last month soccer player David Beckham had his armour-plated four-wheel drive BMW X5 taken from an underground carpark near the Spanish capital Madrid.
Police believe the thieves got to work on the ignition system of the car using computer software as Beckham dined with his sons in a nearby restaurant.
They managed to override the vehicle's security systems including an individual ignition code.
It is thought the gang responsible steals luxury vehicles to order for clients in eastern Europe. It is the second time Beckham has had an X5 stolen, and he is the fourth Real Madrid player to fall victim of luxury car theives in Madrid, where 50 luxury vehicles are stolen every day.
"If it is happening in mainland Europe, I have no doubt it will happen here," Det Sgt Garland added.
More than 7,000 vehicles were stolen in the Greater Dublin area in 2005, 60 per cent of the total number of cars stolen in Ireland.
