Stone dog statue returned to rightful owners after it was stolen from Northampton driveway

A large stone dog statue has been returned to its rightful owners after it was stolen from a Northampton driveway.

After an appeal was published by Northamptonshire Police on October 23, following the theft on October 20, a member of the public contacted officers on November 3 saying they believed they knew where the statue was.

Investigating officer PC Russell Barnes went to visit the person and using photographs of the stolen statue was able to positively identify the found one and return it to its rightful owners.

PC Barnes, of the Northampton Suburban Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: “The owners of the statue are thrilled to have it back – sadly it’s rare to be able to return stolen property to people and they were definitely surprised and pleased when I called them to arrange dropping it back to them.

“I’d like to thank the person who got in touch with us for doing the right thing. They weren’t sure it was the same statue but by comparing distinctive key features I was able to confirm that it was.

“We’re still investigating the theft of this item and I would encourage anyone with information who has yet to come forward to please get in touch.”

The cast stone statue of a hunting dog weighing 60-80kg was carried off from a home in Lanercost Walk by a man and a woman who left the area towards Skiddaw Walk between 6.35pm and 7pm on Friday October 20.

A Northamptonshire Police spokeswoman added: “The suspects in the theft are described as a man and a woman in their late 20s to early 30s.

“The man was about 6ft, of a slim build with short black tight curly hair and a stubbly moustache, and wore a grey tracksuit.

“The woman was about 5ft 4in and had a blonde ponytail. She was wearing a baseball cap, long coat and was carrying a rucksack.”

Anyone with information is asked to call Northamptonshire Police on 101, or alternatively call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, quoting incident number: 23000653250.