A man has been arrested and a quad bike recovered after it was stolen from a farm near Shrewsbury.
The quad bike was stolen on Wednesday 3 July from a farm in Harmer Hill. It was recovered after being located in the back of a van in the car park of a pub in Oakengates.
Police officers carried out a search of the local area, supported by the national police air service (NPAS), to locate the driver of the van.
A man was arrested on suspicion of theft and released on police bail.
South Shropshire Safer Neighbourhood Inspector Nikki Roberts has reassured local farmers police are committed to taking action against those believed to be involved in rural crime.
She said: “We know the significant impact thefts like this can have on our rural communities, particularly farmers and agricultural workers who rely on equipment like quad bikes to be able to run their business, when they’re stolen it really does impact their livelihood. I want to reassure the public we’re aware of this and that we take these thefts very seriously and will do all we can, not just to return the bike but to its rightful owner, but to make sure those believed to be responsible are arrested and put in front of a court and receive a punishment that accurately reflects the crime.
“This incident saw a significant police response, which was supported by the police helicopter, to help identify any suspects which resulted in an arrest being made and an investigation is now on-going.”
The operation involved officers from West Mercia Police’s We Don’t Buy Crime which sees police utilise a range of overt and covert tactics to target criminals involved in burglaries, thefts and handling stolen goods.
If anyone has any information about the theft they should contact West Mercia Police on 101 or alternatively Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
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