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Dominic Cooper’s Stolen 1978 Ferrari Dino 308 GT4 Recovered at Junkyard

The only certainty with car theft is that you have minimal chances of ever getting your car back. English actor Dominic Cooper is one of those rare exceptions to that rule.
Dominic Cooper's 1978 Ferrari Dino 308 GT4 after junkyard recovery 7 photos
Photo: Triangle News via DailyMail
Actor Dominic Cooper is a known petrolhead but, as of late, also a magnet for car thievesActor Dominic Cooper is a known petrolhead but, as of late, also a magnet for car thievesActor Dominic Cooper is a known petrolhead but, as of late, also a magnet for car thievesActor Dominic Cooper is a known petrolhead but, as of late, also a magnet for car thievesActor Dominic Cooper is a known petrolhead but, as of late, also a magnet for car thievesActor Dominic Cooper is a known petrolhead but, as of late, also a magnet for car thieves
Anyone who’s had a car or bicycle or any other type of means of transportation stolen knows that getting the thing back is hopeless. Only a stroke of sheer blind luck would ever lead to the recovery of the item, and this was probably the case here. Well, that and the fact that we’re talking about a celebrity, which brought heightened attention to the case, and a rare car.

Earlier this week, news broke that well-known actor and petrolhead Dominic Cooper had had another car stolen from outside his home in north London: a red 1978 Ferrari Dino 308 GT4, estimated at around $115,000. This alone would have been enough to make headlines, but the fact that this was the fourth time his car had been stolen in just 12 months added another twist to the story and lead to even more coverage.

It could be that some of that heightened attention helped the case, though police are not saying yet. The Met Police confirm for the Daily Mail that the Dino has been found just five days after it went missing, dozens of miles away from the actor’s home, in Reigate, Surrey. They found it in a junkyard, along with four other vehicles, also reported stolen.

A tipster tells the tab that the Dino has been taken to a compound and that, while it’s definitely seen better days, it’s not entirely ruined. Bullet dodged right there.

“The dash has been broken. Some of the wires have been cut,” says the tipster, adding that thieves hot-wired the Dino so they could steal it. “The car is not in pristine condition, it needs a polish. Everyone was talking about how it is Dominic Cooper’s car.”

“It needs a polish” sounds like the British equivalent of “it’ll buff out.” Photos of the vehicle released to the media show no other visible damage that the hood that no longer closes properly.

All things considered, this is a rare happy-ending, and maybe it will inspire Cooper to invest in better security for the future. He obviously needs it.
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Editor's note: Gallery includes photos of some of Dominic Cooper's sweetest rides.

About the author: Elena Gorgan
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Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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