RESIDENTS in Darwen are being warned to take more care of their homes and car keys after a £20,000 car was stolen from outside a house in the town.

Police are urging people to put their keys in a safe place and not to leave them in or near their front door as an open invitation to thieves.

In the latest incident, thieves pulled the door keys through the letterbox of a house in Antigua Drive on a hook before unlocking the door and letting themselves in.

They then picked up the owner's car keys and stole a blue Mercedes C220 saloon.

The incident occured between 10.30pm on Tuesday and 6am on Wednesday.

Sergeant Anne Scott, of Darwen Police, said: "People need to be more careful and store their keys in a safe place or lockable drawer and certainly not in view or near a letterbox. We have had about three of these type of incidents recently where high quality vehicles have been taken in this way.

"We do keep warning people about leaving things on show and making it easier for thieves but people still continue to do it."