Expensive buggies stolen from farm near Morpeth are reunited with owner and suspect arrested

The all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) were snatched from a farm near Morpeth shortly after 10.30pm on Wednesday, October 19.

Police were immediately contacted and officers – supported by the force’s Farmwatch volunteers – were quickly deployed to the area.

After reports that a silver Audi had been in convoy with the stolen buggies, police searched the local area and soon located a vehicle matching its description at a service station near Ashington.

The driver, a 23-year-old man, was subsequently placed in handcuffs and arrested on suspicion of burglary.

But officers and volunteers were not done there. After following various lines of intelligence, they found one of the stolen ATVs hidden in bushes in the Ulgham Grange area within a matter of hours.

Then 12 hours later, officers discovered the second stolen buggy abandoned in bushes near Linton.

Both vehicles have since been seized and will be returned to their rightful owner.

Inspector John Swan, of Northumbria Police’s Rural Policing Team, said: “This was a simply outstanding team effort in order to retrieve the stolen vehicles and bring a suspect into custody.

“I would like to commend our Rural Policing Team who acted quickly to track the buggies, as well as our amazing Farmwatch volunteers who consistently go above and beyond to help protect our rural communities.

“We are incredibly proud of the Farmwatch scheme, which is a network of over 1,300 community members designed to help alert residents across Northumberland to any criminal or suspicious activity, share appeals for information and spread crime prevention advice.

“That network is complemented and supported by our Rural Crime Volunteers, a team of residents who selflessly monitor the areas they know most and feed directly into us if they see anything that rouses suspicion.

“We are one of the only forces in the country to have Rural Crime Volunteers, and their contribution is priceless. We are making great strides in our ongoing crackdown on rural criminals and will continue to use every tactic possible to bring justice against them.”

The man arrested has since been released on police bail and inquiries are ongoing.