A WOMAN is currently in police custody in Derry over the theft of a charity box at Foyleside Shopping Centre.
Police say officers had to go on a fishing expedition to retrieve the charity box after the woman dumped it.
PSNI Foyle say on its Facebook page: “Somedays policing is pretty easy going, today we got to go fishing on duty!
“Fishing for evidence that is! You might have seen us this morning in the city centre, we did get a number of funny looks.
“After receiving a report shortly before 9am that a female was seen on CCTV in Foyleside Shopping Centre stealing an Aware NI charity box, emptying the contents into her bag and dumping the empty charity box outside the old Cinema, Strand Road LPT were on scene within minutes and managed to stop this female before she went into the bus station and arrested her.
“Unfortunately for us, retrieving the charity box was easier said than done, as you can see from the photo below.
“We didn’t have a ladder handy on New Market Street but thankfully being fans of MacGyver and keen fishers, we were able to fashion a make shift fishing line from a tape measure and carabiner. (We were pretty proud of that creation if I do say so myself!)
“Long story short, that’s the collection box and money recovered and one currently in ‘plaice’ at Hotel Strand Road.
“We’ll get the money back to Aware NI as soon as well can.”
