Tip leads police to stolen beehives

BEEHIVES stolen in a late-night sting operation last month have been recovered after an anonymous tip-off.

As reported, the hives were stolen from a remote area of Cergne in the Loire in March.

They were found hundreds of kilometres away on Wednesday, in Plouzané, Finistère.

Marie-Christine Nicollet, who owns the hives with her husband Bernard, said: “The police called us … to say that they were near Rennes.”

Speaking at the time of the theft, Mr Nicollet estimated the cost of the crime at €60,000. “This represents a decade of work,” he said.

Media coverage may have helped recover the hives. The publicity “explains the anonymous email we received,” Mr Nicollet said.