STOLEN Lincolnshire tractors are being sold on to building developers in Afghanistan and Iraq, police have revealed.

Police have said the string of recent tractor thefts across the county are the result of a nationwide tractor smuggling ring.

There have been 40 tractors stolen since January this year in Lincoln and the surrounding areas – such as Metheringham, North Owersby near Market Rasen and Welton.

Continuing investigations as part of Lincolnshire Police's Operation Fusion have revealed the tractors are being stolen to order before being sold on overseas.

James Newall, spokesman for Lincolnshire Police, said: "Tractor thefts have been a significant problem across the county, predominantly in the east and the south.

"Clearly, that could head more towards the villages surrounding Lincoln and the important thing is that farmers are as aware as possible of the situation.

"National groups of organised criminals come into the county, steal the tractors and sometimes they are driven on the roads in convoy with another vehicle.

"We also have evidence they are loaded onto articulated lorries to be transported.

"They are taken out of the county and ultimately shipped abroad.

"Intelligence from the Metropolitan Police suggests they end up either in Eastern Europe, Afghanistan or Iraq, where there are huge amounts of building work going on at the moment.

"There are high value contracts up for grabs and clearly a number of unscrupulous developers are prepared to buy this kind of machinery.

"What we would like farmers to do is, if possible, not leave tractors in fields overnight and instead lock them in compounds that are as secure as possible."

Police are also urging farmers to invest in security and have expert security staff who can advise on the best investments and where to buy them.

Their campaign against rural theft is fronted by the Lincolnshire Police tractor donated by John Deere and branded with police logos by the National Farmers' Union (NFU).

Richard Hezlet, regional director of the NFU, urged farmers to take the appropriate precautions to prevent further thefts.

"Farmers are under such pressure at the moment that they leave the tractors out and someone has them away," he said.

"It is criminal gangs that have gone through the whole country.

"Farmers are starting to take better precautions.

"Some would say machinery retailers have to do more but then they might say they just provide what customers want.

"I think farmers have a duty just as much as anyone else does."