Thief steals 8ft Christmas nutcracker statue from Edinburgh cocktail bar

The manager Paul Baxton said he was disappointed no witnesses had alerted bar staff to the theft outside

Manager Paul Baxton said the theft of the Christmas nutcracker is 'pretty catastrophic' (Copper Blossom)

A thief on an electric bike made away with a 8ft Christmas nutcracker soldier statue from outside an Edinburgh cocktail bar, leavings its owner devastated in the run up to the festive period.

CCTV captured the person, who appears to be male and wearing a mask and hood, cycling up to the £900 decoration and placing it over his lap.

The 13kg statue had formed part of a Christmas display which had cost the venue Copper Blossom thousands of pounds, with a £350 table also broken during the theft.

Police Scotland have been informed about the incident, which occurred at the corner of George Street and North Castle Street at 10.10pm on Monday.

The statue is worth an estimated £900 (Copper Blossom)

Speaking to Sky News, the manager Paul Paxton said the theft was a massive financial blow for his bar, describing it as “pretty catastrophic”.

"The individual nutcrackers are about £900 each," he revealed.

He added that he had been disappointed that no witnesses had alerted him or his staff to the theft, given that the street had been busy at the time of the incident.

"There were about 12 or 13 people who walked past," he said.

"Even if someone had run in, that could have helped. It wasn't a quick process - he fell off his bike.

"A heads-up would have been lovely."

He told BBC News: "He pushed everything aside and pulls the tables over and one falls and breaks and then he yanks the Nutcracker away.

"He falls off his bike once while trying to put it on and struggles to lay it horizontally across him.

"It's an 8ft statue horizontally across a little e-bike. The people on the street didn't really bat an eyelid."

The statue had formed part of a pair, with the second statue now moved indoors.