A man allegedly scammed by thieves into buying a stolen car was forced to run his own investigation after police told him there was not enough evidence to go on.

Greg Pieczynski used simple Google and phone directory searches to track down the man who allegedly sold him a “bargain” £8,000 BMW, which he discovered was stolen when he took it for a service last year.

The tenacious restaurant-owner travelled 200 miles to Croydon in an attempt to get his money back, after police sent him a letter telling him they had dropped the investigation.

And his detective work paid off when he passed his new evidence to the police, who have arrested and charged a man since they reopened the case.

Mr Pieczynski, who lives in Scunthorpe, complained he was passed around between Manchester, North Yorkshire and the Metropolitan police because of confusion over which should take the lead in the investigation.

Mark Hooper, head of the Association of Chief Police Officers vehicle crime unit, said forces often struggled with savvy criminals who worked across different forces’ borders.

His predecessor John Wake desribed the situation as “wholly unacceptable”.

He said: “There can be nothing more disheartening than having lost thousands of pounds in a scam only to be told that the police are effectively not interested.”

Despite his hard work, Mr Pieczynski has had to pay £6,000 to an insurance company to get his car back.

A Croydon police spokesman said he was unable to comment while the case was before the courts.

-Daniel David Abdilla from New Addington was charged on February 23 with fraud by false representation and handling stolen goods.

The 24-year-old was remanded in custody, and is due to appear at Croydon Magistrates’ Court on April 1.