Golden candelabra returned to Newport church
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Officers were able to reunite a large candle holder with the priest at St Mary’s church after it was stolen on Saturday 9 December by a 35-year-old Newport man.
A gold candelabra was returned to a Newport church last month by officers investigating a burglary after a thief sold the item to a scrap metal merchant.
Officers were called to St Mary’s church, Stow Hill, Newport, at around 9.25am on Saturday 9 December following reports that a man had taken a large candle holder from an altar.
The man then left the church and headed towards the city centre before he was arrested by officers on suspicion of theft, where he admitted selling the item for scrap.
PC Andrew Buchanan, the officer in the case, said:
“This man was quickly identified by officers and within 24 hours of the report coming into us, he was arrested on suspicion of theft and it was during the interview that he admitted selling the candelabra to a scrap metal merchant.
“Fortunately, we were able to speak to the dealer to alert them that the item was stolen from the church, and they held onto the item so that we could return it to the priest.
“Burglary and theft can have a real impact on our communities.
“We understand the impact of this type of crime can have on our residents as it not only affects individuals but also businesses and organisations which form our communities.
“This result was made positive due to the collaboration between officers from the neighbourhood policing team (NPT) and the proactive neighbourhood enforcement team (PNET).
“PNET officers helped to gather and progress intelligence for certain types of crime, such as theft, but also support with patrols in the community – as shown with this case where the suspect was quickly arrested by officers.
“We’ve taken positive steps to reduce acquisitive crime across Gwent with initiatives such as We Don’t Buy Crime.
“The team works closely with local businesses, including second hand retailers and registered scrap merchants, providing them with advice and an alert system to share information between dealers to prevent the onward resale of stolen items.”
A 35-year-old Newport man was later charged with theft as part of the investigation.
He appeared at Newport Magistrates Court on Tuesday 2 January and received an £80 fine after pleading guilty.