Thief: I dropped booty down rabbit hole

ON CCTV Neal at castle A THIEF who stole an antique inkwell from a medieval castle then claimed he lost it “down a rabbit hole” has been jailed.

David Neal, 60, was caught on CCTV swiping the historic artefact from Warwick Castle’s Cedar Drawing Room.

He hid the 19th century inkwell, worth £2,000, under his gilet before fleeing the castle by clambering over a security fence OWNER OF GIANT STEER CALLED KNICKERS He told police he had lost the bronze item when he accidentally dropped it down a rabbit hole in the castle grounds.

At Coventry crown court Neal, of Rugby, Warks, was jailed for eight months and ordered to pay £2,000 compensation.

Judge Philip Gregory said: “Institutions like Warwick Castle rely on the honesty of the public. You breached that trust.”