The terrifying ‘Lucky Dip’ car theft craze coming to Britain’s streets after 5 teens killed in wrong-way motorway smash

IT was only a matter of time before the “Lucky Dip” gangsters caused death and misery. Some of the five teenagers who died in a head on crash in Ireland on Sunday had posted clips of themselves being pursued by blue lights as loud music blared. Five teenagers died in this car crash in County Kildare Credit: PA Retired DCI Mick Neville warns we must stop the gangs Credit: Jon Bond – The Sun They uploaded videos weaving in and out of traffic, with one including the caption “wrong way”. Now a family-of-four are in hospital, some of them fighting for their lives after the BMW containing the five balaclava youngsters piled into them going up the M9 motorway in County Kildare in the wrong direction. Alma and Niamh Kinsella, Ellie Hendricken and a seven-year-old boy were heading to a wedding when they were hit by the five ‘joy riders’. Joey Carthy, 15, Alex McCarthy, Jack Kennedy, Kamil Pustkowski, all aged 17, and 18-year-old Jeremy O’Brien all died in the BMW. Some of them had written Lucky Dip Gang into their social media profiles. This is a gang that has been terrorising Ireland. Fluid but well organised, gangsters pick an area at random, break into properties and steal cars and cause mayhem. The lives cut short in the early hours of Sunday morning is not going to deter others, an expert warns. It is feared the balaclava clad Lucky Dip gang could become a social media trend that spreads to the United Kingdom. Retired Scotland Yard DCI Mick Neville tells The Sun: “Social media is such that people in England will think ‘that’s a good idea, we’ll have a go at that as well’. “It’s a contagion, so I’ve no doubts that some idiots somewhere are thinking we’ll have a go at that. “For the criminals they get to pass their tips on how to do it, and they get the bravado effect of people liking it.” Kamil Pustowski was one of five teenagers to die in the crash Credit: social media collect Alex McCarthey was also killed in the head-on collision Jack Kennedy lost his life in the motorway crash Credit: Jeremy O’Bren was killed in the crash Credit: Not known, clear with picture desk Their reckless disregard for the life of other road users is a major headache for police forces. It is too dangerous for police pursuit teams to go after a car which is heading the wrong way up a motorway. That could cause other vehicles to swerve and crash. Mick says: “You’ve got to close the motorway. That’s the safest way to do that.” The Garda had opted not to pursue the BMW going the wrong way up the M9 on Sunday, planning instead to stop the vehicle with a stinger device at the next junction. But the five crashed before they got there. There were reports of similarly risky driving videos appearing on the social media site TikTok. The company insists they have now removed this content. Joey Carthy was linked to a recent hit and run Left to right – Ella Hendricken, Niamh Kinsella, Alma Kinsella are in hospital following the crash Credit: Social Media Collect That is unlikely to stop teens bragging about their dangerous driving by sharing clips. Petrolheads regularly race each other on Britain’s roads, often posting videos of 100mph plus speeds and illegal manoeuvres. But all is not lost. Social media can provide crucial clues to detectives. Whenever a car thief or joy rider uploads an image of themselves committing an offence they provide the police with important evidence. The so-called Bally Boys – named after their balaclavas – believe that because they don’t show their faces there isn’t a case. Mick, though, insists you can identify a suspect who is wearing a balaclava. The ex-head of Forensic Imaging at the Met Police is now CEO at Super Recognisers International. They help police forces across Europe to train police officers to identify criminals caught on CCTV and other digital imagery. Mick explains: “You can identify people in balaclavas, just by looking at their eyes. From a police point of view, you’ve got some real good evidence there.” The super recognisers are trained to see one aspect of an image, such as the eyes or an item of clothing, and then to link them to a previous offence. By building up a jigsaw of information detectives can identify the criminal. Mick continues: “If you get a name, then you start looking for the balaclava and get the DNA, don’t you? “You get the branded clothing that they’re wearing in the car. With a name, you can start to track people. You can look at their phones and see where they were at a particular time.” That means that social media can be useful. Mick adds: “It’s a double-edged sword, really. I mean, I’ve had a few convictions off social media. A video claiming to show the moment the five teenagers were killed in the wrong-way crash Credit: TikTok videos claiming to show car thefts which are believed to have inspired the five teens involved in the M9 crash in Co Kildare. Credit: Social Media Collect “Like when a young lad was robbed in Streatham and he said, ‘I don’t know the bloke’s name, but I know he’s in some of these drill rap videos.’ “We extracted the image and got it ID’d. If you’re going to be mug enough to put yourself on social media, then the police can get you.” Super recognisers are already being used by Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Thames Valley police and by German forces. Mick had been in touch with the Irish Garda prior to the recent tragedy. He thinks the quicker the police catch these criminals the better. Putting the Lucky Dip gang and their ilk behind bars is a good way to prevent more copycats. Two of the teens who died in the BMW smash on Sunday were linked to another road accident last month. Both Carthy and McCarthy were questioned by Gardai over a hit-and-run in Carlow. What Mick wants to see is police forces being more proactive, getting on top of social media-inspired criminals before they get out of hand. He concludes: “They’re not using the technology in a smart way at the moment.”