John Travolta 's Mercedes Benz 280-SL was stolen in Santa Monica on Sunday afternoon (18th September 2011). The Hollywood star parked in a residential street before visiting a nearby Jaguar dealership for around 10 minutes - he returned to find an empty parking space, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Travolta, who had parked his 1970's sports car in Berkeley Street around 3.45pm, reported the theft to authorities. Santa Monica Police Sgt Richard Lewis said, "It's a grand theft auto investigation for a crime that happened in a 10-minute window". It is currently not clear whether the theft was captured on surveillance video, as the actor had parked in a quiet street before setting off on foot to the dealership on Olympic Boulevard. Lewis added, "I don't want to speculate because it's very early in the investigation". Travolta, who will star in the forthcoming crime drama 'Gotti: In the Shadow of My Father', had the keys to the vehicle at the time of the theft. Sources close to the actor suggest the car could be worth around $35,000, although the market value could be three times that amount.
Travolta is a keen car collector and owns a Rolls-Royce, a Mercedes Sl 500 and a Jaguar Xj6, among others. He is also a certified pilot and owns five aircraft including a Boeing 707-138 airliner.