A STOLEN car believed to have been used in an arson attack - which has left a man seriously injured in hospital - has been found burnt out.

The Ford Mondeo was discovered by a member of the public at around 11.10pm on Saturday night, 40 minutes after the arson attack in Magdalene Place at Ferryhill.

The car was found on a dirt track off the A688 at the Bowburn to Sherburn bypass.

Police say they are keen to trace any sightings of the silver Mondeo, registration WV07 YOW, which was stolen from the Peterlee area on July 13.

Durham Police Inspector Andy Smith said: “This is a particularly nasty attack which has left a man with serious injuries in hospital.

“We have identified this Ford Mondeo as being central to our investigation and would urge anyone who may have seen this car, both since July 13 and around the time of the attack, to come forward.

“You may not believe the information to be important, but no matter how small it could provide the vital missing piece of the jigsaw we need.”

  • Anyone with any information is asked to call 101 and ask for CID at Bishop Auckland quoting incident number 563 of July 29.