British police seek suspects in museum heist

May 20 (UPI) -- Police in the British city of Sheffield are seeking suspects wanted for a "carefully planned" heist at a museum on Sunday.

The burglary was reported at 6:45 a.m. Sunday at the Kelham Island Museum, South Yorkshire Police said in a statement.

The suspects allegedly forced entry into the museum and damaged display cases to make off with 12 artifacts related to metalworking in the city.

"We're deeply saddened by the break-in at Kelham Island Museum over the weekend, which appears to have been a carefully planned theft," Kim Streets, the chief executive of the Sheffield Museums Trust, said in a statement.

"Like museums across the country, we care for the objects entrusted to us and work with our partners and communities to celebrate the remarkable feats of innovation, creativity and excellence they represent."

Streets added that the historical significance of the stolen items "goes far beyond any financial value they hold."

"They span one of the first objects hallmarked by Sheffield Assay Office to knives made by one of our last Little Mesters, the much-missed Stan Shaw, and are irreplaceable touchstones of Sheffield's rich heritage," Streets said.

"Some of these items are likely to find their way onto the market and are very distinctive. We're appealing to the public to be vigilant and to share any information they have that might aid their recovery with South Yorkshire Police."

Ashley Carson with the local Sheffield Assay Office, an institution that tests the purity of precious metals to protect consumers from buying fake goods, similarly noted that the stolen items don't actually carry any real value and that the burglary was just the latest in a string of thefts across the city.