Thieves cut their way into a West Sussex garage compound and stole cars worth £200,000, including several high-performance models.

A total of 11 cars, from the Roundstone Car Centre in Mayflower Way, Angmering, were taken.

A police spokesman said three cars worth a total of £55,000 had already been recovered. Two Worthing men, one 26 and the other 29, have been arrested and are helping police with their inquiries.

The three recovered cars - a silver Mercedes Benz convertible, a silver Ford Mondeo and a silver Subaru Impreza - were spotted by police on streets in Goring and Salvington.

Officers have appealed for witnesses. The spokesman said: "There must have been a great deal of activity in the compound while this theft was going on.

"Someone must have seen or heard something and we would urge them to contact us."

The eight vehicles still outstanding are: a black Lexus, registration W511 LMR; an unregistered silver Mercedes Benz Elegance; a red Toyota estate car, R889 JPN; a green Citroen Saxo, W736 OHU; an orange Volvo coup, W691 DWC; a silver Ford Puma, T483 SFL; a £28,000 blue BMW convertible, PN51 5YA; and a £35,000 blue Jaguar convertible, T560 AFJ.

Garage owners refused to comment when contacted this morning.

The break-in happened between 7.30pm on Tuesday (November 12) and 6am on Wednesday. Details have just been released.

It is not known how the thieves transported the vehicles away or how they got the engines started. Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Sergeant Gary Tutt on 0845 6070999.