Thief caught on camera stealing giant Christmas decoration

CCTV captured the 8ft Nutcracker being stolen from outside the bar on George Street

A thief on an electric bike has been recorded on CCTV stealing a giant Christmas Nutcracker soldier statue from outside an Edinburgh cocktail bar.

The person, who appears to be male and wearing a hood and a mask, puts the 8ft soldier, which cost £900, horizontally across his lap and drives off.

The incident, which happened at Copper Blossom at the corner of George Street and North Castle Street at 22:10 on Monday, has been reported to police.

Manager Paul Paxton told BBC Scotland he was "shocked" at how brazen the theft was as people were walking past at the time.

Nutcracker Soldier dolls are a traditional German Christmas decoration dating back to the 17th Century

The 28Ib (13kg) figure was part of a Christmas display costing thousands of pounds outside the basement bar.

The video shows the man pushing over furniture and breaking a £350 table.

He then rips the statue from the railings and drags it onto his bike in front of three passers-by.

The person then rides off while balancing the soldier across the vehicle.

They are then seen riding east on George Street in the direction of St Andrew Square.

Mr Paxton said when he watched the CCTV footage back he could not believe how the thief removed the decoration in front of three passers-by.

"People were walking past as he was loading up his bike, it's so shocking," he said.

"We were still open and had just stacked up all the outdoor furniture in front of the statue five minutes beforehand. He cycles up on his e-bike and it all happens in the space of a minute, it's so fast.

"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."

He said it was "frustrating" to have lost one of the front door centrepieces of the display when it "wasn't even December yet".

"We're a city centre venue but we are small so we rely on our front door to get some traffic because we are a basement venue."

The statues are part of a pair with the other one now being kept indoors overnight.

Police Scotland said inquiries were at an early stage.