ORPINGTON: Cops recover rare fire engine fittings in Clacton-on-Sea (From News Shopper)

ORPINGTON: Cops recover rare fire engine fittings in Clacton-on-Sea

9:00am Saturday 21st November 2009 in

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RARE brass fittings stolen from an antique fire engine have been recovered following an appeal by your favourite newspaper.

Last month, thieves broke into a garage in Orpington and stripped the solid brass petrol cap, radiator cap, bell and search lamp off a 1937 Leyland Cub fire engine.

The owners of the rare engine were so desperate to see the valuable items returned they approached News Shopper and offered a £1,000 reward for their safe return.

It wasn’t long before a member of the public contacted the Bromley Common and Keston Safer Neighbourhood Team with a tip off that the stolen items were at a house in Clacton-on-sea, Essex.

Officers drove the 80 miles to the seaside town on October 30 and found all the brass fittings, worth around £2,000, stashed in a black suitcase in a spare bedroom.

Head of the Bromley Common and Keston Safer Neighbourhood Team Sergeant John Feeney said: "We are hugely grateful to the News Shopper for publicising this case.

“This was a classic example of the police and the press working together well to make a real difference.

“We will ensure that those involved in this type of criminal activity - from those breaking into homes, to those selling stolen goods - will be directly targeted.”

No reward

The owners of the Leyland Cub, who wish to remain anonymous, brought the red engine to Orpington from Swanley 15 years ago.

They say there has yet to be an eligible claim for the reward, but added: “We are over the moon that everything has been found.”

The fittings will be returned to them after police complete their enquiries.

A Bromley police insider said: “Forget the great crime fighting duos of the past such as Starsky and Hutch, now we have Bromley Police and News Shopper!”

• A 64-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods and has been bailed until December 2.