Chef Tommy Banks urged thieves to donate $32,000 worth of stolen pies: “Do something good because it’s Christmas.”

London – A Michelin-starred chef in England called on Monday for thieves who stole his work van, along with about $32,000 worth of meat pies inside, to get into the holiday spirit and donate the loot to help people in need. Tommy Banks, a restaurant owner in north-east England, posted a video on Instagram telling his followers about the theft of his van and 2,500 pies, and urged those responsible to “do the right thing.”

The chef said the refrigerated van was loaded with food and left to charge overnight. But when my partner came back in the morning to deliver the pies, he was nowhere to be found.

In a statement, North Yorkshire Police said on Wednesday that the stolen van was found abandoned with fake number plates 30 miles from where it was taken, and that the investigation is ongoing. It was not clear that all the pies were in the van.

“I know you’re a criminal,” Banks said in his video appeal, “but maybe you did something good because it’s Christmas and maybe we can feed a few thousand people with those pies you stole,” urging the perpetrators to come out. pies at a community center or other place where they can be distributed.

In a subsequent post, he warned that “time is running out for these pie kidnappers,” referring to the common English dish. The tasty goods stolen from the van included steak and ale, as well as turkey and butternut squash pies, all headed for a pie stall at the nearby York Christmas Market.

Chef Banks owns two restaurants, a bar and a fine dining service near the old town of York. He said the stolen pies were worth about $32,000.

Banks took to her social media account to say she hopes thieves “don’t get presents this Christmas.”

The pie heist was not the first food-related crime in England this autumn.

In October, $390,000 worth of cheddar cheese was stolen from Neal’s Yard Dairy in London. The seller said it was a scammer pretending to be a supermarket distributor stole approximately 49,000 pounds of cheese. Detectives from Scotland Yard and international authorities were still searching for the criminals as of this week.