A MAN from Tadworth has been jailed in connection with the theft of a rare 14th century jug snatched in a museum heist.
The bronze Wenlok Jug, valued at £1 million and said to be a national treasure, was stolen from a high-security display cabinet at Stockwood Discovery Centre in Luton, Bedfordshire, last May.
In September, following a national appeal on BBC's Crimewatch and the offer of a £25,000 reward for its return, it was recovered in Tadworth, found wrapped in a towel in a garage rented by Ronald Nash, 23, of Pitwood Green, Tadworth.
Nash was jailed for two years and three months at Luton Crown Court on Friday for handling stolen property. He had earlier pleaded guilty to the offence, and an additional charge of being concerned in the supply of class A drugs, for which he was sentenced to an additional year behind bars.
A second man, Louis Kybert, 25, of Ferndale Road, Banstead, who was arrested during the police search for the jug, also pleaded guilty to the possession of two stun guns and being concerned in the supply of class A drugs. He was sentenced to five years in prison.
Bedfordshire Police's Detective Inspector Martin Peters, who led the investigation to trace and recover the jug, said after the sentencing: "This was a high profile case which involved the theft of a national treasure and attracted a lot of public interest. The amount of evidence gathered by officers has meant that the offenders had no alternative but to plead guilty.
"I am pleased that justice has now been done and that these men will spend a significant time behind bars."
The Wenlok Jug is 31.5cm tall, weighs 6.1kgs and is decorated with coats of arms, badges and is inscribed with the words "My Lord Wenlok".
The treasure was nearly sold to the Metropolitan Museum in New York in 2005, but it was made subject to an export ban and Luton Museums Service raised £750,000 to buy it. It is now thought to be worth in excess of £1 million.
No-one has been convicted of stealing the jug and it remains unclear how it ended up in Surrey.
A 47-year-old man arrested in Tadworth in connection with the investigation was released without further action.
The jug has been returned to the museum.
