One man arrested after dog walker spots suspected thief pulling wheelie bin of stolen alcohol worth £5,000 in Washington

Police were called around 7am yesterday, Thursday, July 15 after a dog walker contacted officers claiming he had seen a suspicious man in the Laurens Court area of Concord, Washington.

The intoxicated male was alleged to be hauling a wheelie bin full of wine, spirits and beer down the road with great difficulty.

Officers arrived and found a man in possession of a huge alcohol haul worth £5,000 – as well as a large quantity of electronic equipment and food.

Police confirmed there had been a break-in at The Mill House in Blackfell earlier that morning.

A 47-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of burglary and the items were seized.

Chief Inspector Nicola Wearing, of Northumbria Police, said: “The public are our eyes and ears in the community and I’d like to thank those who contacted us after seeing a man acting so suspiciously.

“That public tip-off allowed us to immediately deploy resources to the area and there we found a huge quantity of suspected stolen goods, along with a man matching the caller’s description.

“He was subsequently brought into custody. An investigation is ongoing but we’d like to thank all those who have assisted so far – and hope this positive action offers reassurance to businesses and residents across our region.”

The man has been released on bail, with enquiries ongoing.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police via the ‘Tell Us Something’ page of their website or by calling 101 quoting log NP-20210715-0174.

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