Yorkshire restaurant owner slams 'thieving toe rag' who stole Pete McKee artwork

The original print depicting a bottle of Sheffield’s iconic Henderson’s Relish by the esteemed painter was allegedly ripped off the wall and stolen by a customer at Neon Fish in Millhouses sometime between Saturday, March 19, evening and Sunday, March 20, afternoon.

Restaurant owner and head chef Cary Brown claims to have captured the prime suspect on CCTV and has reported the incident to South Yorkshire Police.

A post on the restaurant’s Facebook page read: “To the thieving toe rag who thought it was a good idea to steal one of our original prints - bad news for you pal - we have CCTV everywhere.

"So yes - we saw you on exiting the gents - and yes the image is crystal clear. So, we look forward to welcoming you back - along with our property. If not, I’m sure the police will be interested to look at your mugshot.

“So sad isn’t it? That we try our best to make the surroundings as nice as possible for the pleasure and comfort of our customers and some thieving scum has to spoil it. Really disappointing.”

The 56-year-old said the footage shows a man he believes took the picture leaving the restaurant ‘walking funny’ as though he is trying to conceal something.

But he added police advised him not to release the video as he can’t be certain enough that the person in the footage is the thief.

Cary urged the thief to come forward and bring the artwork back to the venue.

He said: “It is really disappointing. The picture was stuck on the wall with proper adhesive so they have really ripped it off. We spent a lot of time and effort making the place look nice and then something like this happens.

"But I would urge them to bring back the picture and drop it through the letter box and then we can call an end to it there.”

Anyone with information about the reported theft can contact South Yorkshire Police on 101.