A MAN who fell asleep whilst overnight fishing, woke up to discover a thief had netted hundreds of pounds worth of his fishing equipment.

The angler had been fishing at Cleasby Lake, near Richmond over night on Sunday, September 28.

He nodded off between 1am and 4am on Sunday, September 28. But when he woke up, he discovered several hundreds of pounds worth of fishing tackle had been netted from outside his bivouac while he slept.

Police are now appealing for information about the theft.

Officers would like to hear from anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area around the time of the incident or who has been offered any fishing equipment for sale.

Anyone who can help with their enquiries should contact North Yorkshire Police on 101 – select option 2 – and ask for PC Jereme Hillcoat or Richmond police.

Alternatively, information can be emailed to jereme.hillcoat@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk

If you prefer not to give your name, Crimestoppers can be contacted on 0800 555 111.

Please quote reference number 12140169295 when passing information about this incident.