MILITARY memorabilia has been recovered as a police probe continues into the alleged theft of property from a veterans’ charity in the town centre.

Officers are appealing to the public to help trace the owners of a number of items that have been located as part of the investigation into allegations of fraud and theft against a member of staff at Blue Apple Veterans.

A 57-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of theft as part of the investigation last year.

After being questioned by detectives, he was released under investigation pending further enquiries.

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Police constable Naomi Burnell said: “This is a complex investigation and our enquiries are currently ongoing.

“As part of this we are keen to locate the owners of a number of items which had been donated to the charity, not for sale, but to be displayed at the Blue Apple coffee shop on Buttermarket Street in Warrington.

"Unfortunately there were no contact details for those who kindly donated the memorabilia, so we are unable to contact them directly.

“These items predominately consist of military memorabilia, but there are also a number of other items including collectible items and furniture."

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Blue Apple Veterans, which was established in 2012, announced the news of its closure in January 2018.

In a statement to the Warrington Guardian at the time, the board of trustees said: "We are saddened by the inevitable impact this will have on the veterans and their families who were supported by the charity and this is something we have been trying hard to avoid for some time.

"Unfortunately, the income now does not meet the operational costs and under Charity Commission rules we were obliged to close the charity to avoid incurring further debt."

Anyone who believes that they own any of the items recovered can contact police on 101 quoting incident number 266 of February 19, 2018 or visit cheshire.police.uk/contact/general-enquiries.

Information can also be reported anonymously, via Crimestoppers, on 0800 555111.