A van which was used to steal £25,000 worth of pies from a celebrity chef has finally been recovered following a plea from the owner – but it’s too late.
Tommy Banks was absolutely gutted after his van, packed with 2,500 of his gourmet pies, was nicked. The Michelin Star maestro behind The Black Swan in Oldstead, North Yorkshire, took to Instagram with a heartfelt plea for the return of his precious cargo. Tommy is known for the BBC’s The Great British Menu was left reeling when he revealed on Monday: “We’ve been robbed.” He shared the shocking news that his van, destined for York Christmas market, had been swiped, leaving him pie-less and appealing to the robbers’ better nature.
However, the latest update from the Police reveals they found the cargo, but it’s damaged and completely unusable. Banks let his fans know authorities had found the van, badly damaged and with stolen license plates, in Middlesbrough.
READ MORE: ‘I ate a mince pie in gravy at Alton Towers – my kids won’t forget Christmas trip’
READ MORE: Celebrity chef Tommy Banks has van full of 2,500 gourmet mince pies stolen
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(Image: AP)
This is about 30 miles (50 km) from where it was taken. By some strange stroke of luck, the pies were inside, but they would all have to be discarded.
“It’s just so much waste. It’s just rubbish,” Banks said in a video on Instagram. “Sorry, it’s not a happier ending to this story.”
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The pies, comprising of several steak and ales, turkey and butternut squash, were said to be damaged. However, the majority seemed to be in place.
Previously, the chef tried to bargain with the thieves. “So, yeh, a bit of a pain really, it’s horrible being robbed. What I can’t get my head round, these guys probably stole the van … but probably didn’t bargain for the nearly tonne of pies that is in the back of it. That’s kind of sad. That’s a lot of meat, a lot of flour and eggs, and a lot of work, like so much work. It’s £25,000 worth of stock in the back of this van.”
(Image: AP)
“I know you’re a criminal but maybe do something nice because it’s Christmas. And maybe we could feed a few thousand people with these pies that you’ve stolen.” He also urged anyone who saw the pies to tell the police.
This is the second food heist of recent times, with nearly 1,000 rounds of artisan Cheddar being nabbed from London’s Neal’s Yard Dairy by a con artist posing as a wholesale distributor for a major French retailer. That was worth around £300,000.
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