Thieves have stolen an irreplaceable dog head statue worth hundreds of pounds from a Stevenage garden.

A police appeal has been launched today to find the statue, which is one of a pair and was taken from a garden of a house in Tillers Link in Shephall.

The theft is believed to have taken place at some point between 5.30pm on Friday, May 1, and 3.15pm on Monday, May 4.

It is worth around £400 and would have taken some time to remove, as it was well secured and would have needed transport to remove as it is very heavy.

The police believe the thieves may have already tried to sell the statue and would urge people to keep a look out.

PC Matt O’Neill is investigating the incident and said: “The statue is one of a pair and virtually irreplaceable. The owner is obviously very upset by the theft and we are keen to trace the dog head as soon as possible. It is clearly very distinctive and also very rare.

“If you saw anyone behaving suspiciously in the area at the time, or have seen the statue since the theft, please contact me as soon as possible.”

Anyone with information should call PC O’Neill on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.