A 49-year old man from Maidstone has been charged after a suspect tried to steal a car when requesting a test drive.

A Honda Civic advertised for sale was driven away by a man in Tonbridge Road, after the owner was distracted and not in the vehicle.

The incident happened on March 29 and police later stopped the car on Buckland Hill and the driver was arrested. He was then bailed, pending further investigation.

On Tuesday, a Peugeot van was also reported stolen from a private car park in London Road.

The vehicle was recovered by police officers in Milton Street the following day.

Jason Higgins, of Milton Street, Maidstone, was arrested and charged with two counts of driving a vehicle without consent.

He was also charged with causing criminal damage to another vehicle and assaulting an emergency worker in relation to claims he threw a drink over a police officer.

He appeared before Medway Magistrates’ Court today.

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