Published: Friday, 12th June, 2009 12:47pm

Shady characters swipe solar lights

CALLOUS crooks who made off with £850 of solar panels could cost Peebles thousands in lost revenue.

The light-fingered thieves struck at Haylodge Park during the British Caravanners Club"s annual convention in the town.

Four solar panels and 13 solar lights with a total value of about £850 were taken.

Club members were left enraged at the thefts having used Haylodge Park for their annual convention for over 35 years without incident.

Over 120 units attended the event and it is estimated that each unit will spend up to £200 in the local area during their stay.

This equates to £24,000 in revenue for local businesses during the club"s week-long stay.

Club chairman, George Neil said: 'This is the first time we"ve ever been targeted in such a way. Members had come from all over the UK and many were fuming to have lost their solar lights and panels.

'For some reason the plain white lights were ignored and it was the multi-coloured ones that were taken. The thieves were obviously specific in what they targeted.'

'This incident won"t deter us from returning next year but such incidents, after being reported back through caravanning magazines and websites, can be very damaging to the numbers who attend.'

Local councillor Catriona Bhatia understands the importance of return visitors and hopes Peebles reputation isn"t too badly affected.

She said: 'Peebles relies heavily on tourism and the money brought in is greatly appreciated. I would hope that the town"s reputation isn"t too badly damaged.

'However police in Peebles have a very high detection and solvency rate and I am sure they are doing all they can to restore Peebles" good name.'

A police spokesperson said: 'We are area keen to hear from anyone who has any information regarding these thefts, or who may have been offered the items for sale. Officers can be contacted at Peebles Police Station on 01721 720637.'