Charity pond's wet thieves hunted

The charity pond is in the Winter Gardens at Duthie Park

Police are hunting thieves who stole hundreds of pounds in coins from a charity pond in Aberdeen.

The theft happened at what is known as the frog pond, in the Winter Gardens at Duthie Park, where children are among those who throw in coins.

Grampian Police said it was a "particularly nasty crime".

They appealed for anyone who may have seen someone with a large amount of coins or wet clothing in the area to contact them.

Pc Robbie Rennie said: "Various members of the public have thrown money into the pond believing it would benefit a local charity.

"Small children would have thrown in most of the coins into the pond and it is alarming to think that someone would steal that money.

"A person or persons would have had to climb into the water at the pond to steal the money. These people would have had wet clothing and would have been carrying a large amount of change to the value in excess of £300."