A quick-thinking farmer alerted police to a metal theft, which led to two men being arrested last Wednesday.

the farmer jumped in his car and followed a suspect lorry near Burbage until officers arrived from Wiltshire Police’s Operation Herald, a team combating metal thefts.

One of the arrested men was also wanted for driving away without paying for fuel from garages in London.

The pair had been seen entering farmyards and looking at metal stored in one farmyard but left when challenged. They had also been seen acting suspiciously at four other farms in the area.

The farmer who tracked the suspects’ vehicle had been the victim of metal theft.

The arrested men, aged 21 and 45, from Swindon, were later released on police bail. Their lorry was seized along with contents that included a large bucket from a digger.

Police are now trying to trace the owners.

The rising price of scrap metal and growing world demand has led to increased thefts of scrap metal.

Det Insp Lindsey Winter, who leads Operation Herald, said: “These crimes often involve high value equipment such as farm machinery and cause a great deal of stress and financial loss to victims.

“We also need the public to be vigilant and report any suspicious activity, particularly around buildings, electricity substations and manhole covers.”

Anyone with information on metal thefts should contact DI Winter on 0845 408 7000 or operationherald @wiltshire.pnn.police.uk