Police have made an arrest and recovered suspected stolen equipment worth more than £250,000 after receiving reports of a business burglary.

Community officers have arrested five further people in Bedford this week in a separate operation tackling burglary and theft from business premises.

Bedfordshire Police were able to trace the equipment after it was reported stolen from business premises in Upper Caldecote on Sunday night (7 January).

Officers recovered the equipment from an address in Leighton Buzzard and subsequently arrested a man in his 30s from London on suspicion of burglary.

He has been released on bail, pending further enquiries.

Three men were also arrested in Bedford yesterday (Monday) on suspicion of theft from shop offences, with the town’s community team running dedicated patrols tackling the crime in the town centre.

The team also made two further arrests as part of the same operation today (Tuesday).

Detective Superintendent Trevor Davidson, head of crime at Bedfordshire Police, said: “Theft and burglary can ruin people’s lives and businesses. We will continue to show our communities that we will not tolerate this activity.

“The swift and successful recovery of this expensive equipment shows what is possible when we have all the right information and able to act on it. We are constantly collaborating with our partners to catch and convict the burglars who blight our communities.

“We would also urge members of the public to report any criminal activity to us as any information we receive helps us to carry out further enforcement and related operations.”

Anyone with information about burglary is asked to report it to police or call 101

You can also report via Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via the Crimestoppers website.