Australian police recover more than 40,000 stolen coins based on TV series Bluey

Police in Australia have recovered more than 40,000 stolen limited edition coins based on the popular children's television programme, Bluey.

The coins, which have a face value of one Australian dollar (51p) each, were found in a self-storage business in the suburbs of Sydney, police said. Three people have been charged over the theft.

It comes after 63,000 of the coins produced by Australia's national mint in Canberra were reported stolen from a Sydney warehouse in July, not far from where police made the discovery on Tuesday.

The children's programme features Bluey, a blue heeler puppy, who embarks on adventures with her dog family. The Brisbane-based series has proven a hit across the globe.

Police formed an investigation team known as Strike Force Bandit to investigate the theft, named after Bluey's dad in the animated series, named Bandit.

A 27-year-old woman who police allege drove two accomplices to commit the July burglary was arrested on Tuesday, hours before the coins were recovered.

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Two men had earlier been charged over the theft, and police were a searching for a fourth suspect.

Police previously recovered 189 of the coins in a raid on a Sydney property on July 31. They discovered the dealer selling them was a legitimate coin collector, who had innocently bought them for AU$1.50 (76p) each.

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