Would-be thieves were foiled in their attempt to steal lead from the roof of a remote farmhouse in the St Keverne parish by a quick-thinking passerby.

The member of the public interrupted mid-theft and noted the number plate of their vehicle, before calling the police.

PSCO Julia Berry described the passerby as “very vigilant” in her report to St Keverne Parish Council last week. Among the other six crimes reported during October were a car being stolen, which was later found burnt out at a nearby quarry, the theft of a mobile phone and a theft from the parish hall in St Keverne.