Published: August 16, 2012
Police investigate CCTV footage of vandals in Burnham's Marine Cove

Police are investigating CCTV footage after vandals caused damage in Burnham-On-Sea's Marine Cove gardens on Wednesday night (August 15th).

A statue of a cherub, which acts as a centrepiece to the gardens in the middle of a pond, was broken, as pictured here, in the overnight attack. A bench was also damaged.

It is the first incident at the refurbished gardens since they opened last year following a major £360,000 four-year regeneration project.

Sedgemoor District Council, which oversees the gardens, says its CCTV cameras have captured the incident and the footage has now been passed to Burnham Police for further investigation.

The council also instructed a local building company to recover the cherub statue and repair it as necessary.

Cllr Duncan McGinty, leader of Sedgemoor District Council, told Burnham-On-Sea.com: "It really is heart-breaking when something like this happens."

"I know that the refurbishment of Marine Cove Gardens has been a huge community effort, the results of which have been enjoyed by residents and visitors alike."

"I feel very sorry for all the volunteers who have put so much time and effort into making the Gardens a special place and I am sure that the damage will be rectified shortly. I am glad that SDC caught the incident on CCTV which is now in the hands of the Police."

Pictured: The damaged cherub statue on Thursday morning after the vandalism and, above, soon after it was first unveiled last year