£15k worth of equipment stolen from Antarctic Monkeys tribute band
A van loaded with more than £15,000 worth of music equipment has been stolen from a tribute band.
Guitars, amps and pedals were taken when thieves drove off with the Antarctic Monkeys’ van in Bradmore, Wolverhampton.
Dean, the singer and frontman of the tribute band, said: “It contained our band equipment and it was loaded and ready to go because we had two gigs that day. Being a tribute band, we have to use what they use to be authentic.”
He added: “It knocks you for six. It’s never happened before and it was a big shocker. The van was stolen in the morning and we had two gigs – one in Bedford and one in Cambridge.
“In the morning I was driving around looking for it and we were trying to pull something together. We hired a couple of amps and borrowed some equipment from other bands and pulled those gigs off.”
Dean, who lives in Wolverhampton, said it was “devastating” to lose all of the equipment. The 39-year-old said: “It’s no use to anyone apart from us. It’s sad that it’s all gone, really.
“You’re looking at about £15,000 – the guitars were worth about £5,000. It’s on my my mind all the time.
“I’ve still got hope that it might turn up on eBay, but it could just be in a garage.”
“Most of it is replaceable, I would imagine, with the only thing that is not is our backdrop sign which is hand made.
“It took a lot of effort to design and get that together – and now it’s gone. That’s the main thing that’s irreplaceable.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up by Georgie Surridge, lead singer of Midnight Angel and Finding Georgia, along with a new Help The Antarctic Monkeys Facebook page – after the band's official page was shut down.
By Friday morning, £870 had been raised in a bid to get the band back on their feet.
Dean said: “We’re overwhelmed by the support we’ve had. We never realised how much we were liked.
“There’s still great people out there, even though this has happened.”
A spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said: “Police are investigating after a white Mercedes Sprinter van was stolen from Swanmore Close in the Bradmore area of Wolverhampton sometime between 2.15am and 2.35am on June 22.
“Anyone with information is asked to contact police via Live Chat at west-midlands.police.uk between 8am and midnight or call 101 anytime, quoting crime reference 20WV/149230J/19.”
To donate, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/fjcrnm-replace-stolen-equipment
