'You’re all wonderful!': Reddit, Twitter unites to help crack case of stolen Land Rover in hours

The power of the Internet has reunited a motorist with his stolen 4WD within hours, after a callout on Twitter and Reddit prompted a detective-level hunt.

San Francisco freelance photographer Sebastiaan de With was devastated to learn his 1991 Land Rover Defender was missing from its car parking space.

After filing a police report for the rare vehicle he had purchased in Texas in September, Mr de With took the investigation to the internet for help on November 28.

Desperate to find his car, the motorist asked the people of Twitter and Reddit to contact him if they happened to come across it.

It could have been a long shot, but eventually people began to spot the rare Land Rover in various locations, and passed on details of its whereabouts.

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The 4WD was on the move fairly quickly - but one eagle-eyed Redditor recognised the vehicle on his way home from the gym the next morning.

Nick Ghirardelli said he notified the police and offered to stay with the vehicle until Mr de With arrived.

"I thought it'd be pointless to post it, but on the other hand, I really wanted to find my car," Mr de With told the SF Gate.

Mr de With described the car as "a bit trashed, but recoverable" with a few thousand dollars in damages including a busted ignition and steering column, destroyed gas filler, and broken rear brakes.

"They're extremely hard cars to find in the US, and I was waiting on an appraiser to come around to get full coverage, full-value insurance. So it being gone meant I had absolutely nothing, not even a claim payout,” he said.