Thieves steal entire contents of a family's home

Detectives investigating the theft of a removals lorry containing the entire contents of a family's home have made a national appeal for people with information to come forward.

The lorry was stolen from Bishops Move in Oaklands Business Centre, Oaklands Park, Wokingham, overnight on 20-21 July.

The vehicle was last seen leaving the compound in the darkness of the early hours of Wednesday morning and has not been seen since.

Police have not received any information about where it may be and are today appealing for people across the country who may have seen it, or who has information about the crime, to come forward for the sake of the family who have lost their belongings.

Since the theft, which is believed to have happened at 4.30am, police have received up to 40 calls from across the country from members of the public reporting sightings of a Bishops Move van.

The calls came from as far afield as Lancashire, Hampshire, Devon and Cornwall and West Mids police.

Each of these sightings have been investigated and the vans seen are not the one which was stolen.

The van which was stolen is distinctive as it is the only one in the fleet which has Newbury and the telephone number 01635 521531 written on it. It is an L-reg, yellow Mercedes lorry.

The van was stolen from a compound where it was being stored overnight. It contained the entire contents of a family home in Hurst. The exact amount of property stolen is not known but is estimated to be worth tens of thousands of pounds.

Police are urging people who have seen the Newbury van with the Newbury phone number on it to come forward as soon as possible. They are also keen to speak to people who may have information about the whereabouts of the van and its contents or those behind the theft.

All calls will be treated in the strictest confidence. People are asked to ring 0845 8 505 505 and quote urn 713 of 28.7.04 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Please contact Sian Hickman if you have any questions on this release on 01189 53654 Thames Valley Police