A gang of thieves fleecing parking meters across Brisbane has been nabbed, but not before accruing some $800,000 in loose change.

Four people now face court over the thefts, in which roughly $8 was stolen every week from around 1900 parking meters across the city between January 2007 and March this year.

Queensland Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson  said in a media conference that the alleged activities had been “protracted and very clever”.

The ruse was up when officials at Brisbane council noticed a discrepancy with the revenue collected from parking meters.

Sarajevo-born Tea Strekozov and his brother Dominik Pawel Skorka joined Polish-born Witold Zenon Skorka, and Fiona Ann Reid in facing the Brisbane Magistrates court earlier this week.

All have four have been granted conditional bail with charges so far including theft and handling tainted property. Their trail continues later this month.

[Sydney Morning Herald]