It is one of the more unusual 'rescues' police have been involved in.

Searching a house for stolen property, officers came across Ebb, a goldfish taken during a break-in last month at Easington Playgroup in Banbury.

The children at the playgroup based at Harrier School in Bloxham Road, are celebrating after being reunited with their pet - returned to them by Pc Alistair Thorne in a police evidence bag.

Playgroup leader Margarett Burr said the thieves trashed the place and took every electrical item.

She said: "I went through to another room and stopped at the goldfish bowl, but the goldfish was not in the bowl."

Ms Burr spent hours looking for the fish, worried one of the children would find it dead. Then it dawned on her, Ebb had been taken as well.

"The parents were mortified. Everyone was more upset about the fish than anything else," she said.

Ms Burr praised police for their work - adding that she had to formally identify the goldfish as theirs. "He just looked at me and smiled," she said.

Insp Steve Duffy said: "We are pleased we were able to detect this crime so quickly and return the goldfish.

"But on a serious note, this a was a good example of police investigation."

After his time away, however, Ebb has found himself with some new fishy friends. In the wake of the burglary, two people bought replacements.

Anthony Baugh, 21, of Sinclair Avenue in Banbury, has been charged with burglary