Thieves escape with church organ

Police say the organ is only suitable for use in a church

An organ worth £60,000 has been stolen from a Lanarkshire church.

Strathclyde Police said two men removed the instrument from St Andrew's Episcopal Church, in Uddingston, between 1400 and 1800 BST on Tuesday.

The men, believed to have been driving a white van, parked in the church driveway before removing the dark oak-coloured three-tier organ.

Detectives have launched an appeal for witnesses to the incident.

The organ, which was approximately 5ft in height and 5ft wide, may have been damaged while being removed.

Blue numbers

One of the males responsible has been described as 30-35 years of age with dark curly hair and was wearing a yellow T-shirt.

Officers believe the van involved may have blue numbers written on the side, which could be a phone number for the Glasgow area.

Det Con David Boyd, of Hamilton CID, said: "This is a highly unusual theft as the organ itself would only really be suitable for use in a church.

"Due to the sheer size and weight of the organ I am confident that anyone who was in the vicinity of the church between 1400 and 1800 hours may well have seen something.

"I would therefore urge anyone who has any information into the whereabouts of the organ or any information in relation to contact Hamilton police station or Crimestoppers."