POLICE are appealing for help in tracking down thieves who stole a statue of a portly chef from a roadside pub at the weekend.

The 7ft fibreglass statue, which cost more than £300, has stood at the Hobson pub, beside the A692 road at Burnopfield, for the past three years. It disappeared between midnight on Saturday and 10am Sunday.

The statue, known as the fat chef, was secured to a lamppost by rope which had been cut.

PC Chris Bentham said it was possible the model, which was fairly light, could have been carried from the site by someone on foot, or it could have been taken to a nearby van.

He said: "We are hoping someone can help with information which will enable us return it to its rightful place."

Pub landlady Mary Devine said they would not be able to replace the statue because the company which made the original now only made models 3ft high