In 2015, a man from Gravdal in Lofoten had his car stolen.

On Tuesday this week, he appeared at Rudskiar Harbor in Harstad, after eight years.

And it was according to In Harstad A large-scale rescue operation was launched, as it was not certain whether the car had ended up in the water recently, or whether anyone needed help.

It eventually turned out that the car had been there for a long time, and that it had a criminal background.

Received notice in 2020

Christian Andriessen from the Troms Operations Center tells NRK that the police became aware of the car already in 2020.

-This is a car that has been at sea for several years. We reviewed the past events and it turned out that this was the car we had a mission for in 2020.

He says that three years ago it was reported that a car was in the water.

– At that time, we went out on a mission with divers and were able to confirm the type of car. No measures were taken to remove it because it was not appropriate.

Now, the car does the job itself.

-For some reason it has surfaced now.

Andreasen says it was people who work in the port area who called and said there was a car in the water.

Based on information about a car floating in the sea, we treated the matter as a real accident and took the necessary measures.

It turned out to be less dramatic than he feared.

– The car was towed to the ground and the owner was notified. We don’t do anything else about it.

-Sudden news

The car, a Hyundai Elantra, was owned by a man from Gravdal when the car was stolen.

– It was a sudden message and was not expected at all, says the man, who wishes to remain anonymous Lofoten Post Office.

He says he was on his way to Narvik when the car stopped in Gullesfjorden.

– There was a traffic jam. We called a tow truck and left the car at the rest area. When the tow truck arrived, the car was gone, and there was no trace to follow. That’s why it was such a surprise to find it now, he says.