Police investigating toy thefts try to identify woman

The value of the toys that were stolen amounts to £344.87

A police force investigating two thefts of toys from a bookstore in Christchurch has issued images of a woman it would like to identify.

Dorset Police said it had been reported a woman had entered Bookends on High Street and had stolen Jellycat soft toys to the value of £209.92 at about 16:15 BST on 26 May.

It added that a woman had returned to the shop at about 14:20 on 8 June to steal more of the same toys to the value of £134.95.

PC Oliver Hudson said officers urged anyone who recognised the woman in the pictures to come forward.

As Jellycat toys have become hugely collectable and buyers share their items on social media, their thefts have become more frequent, with instances as large as ram raids reported across the country.