An Eric Clapton fan from Plymouth was left gutted when his pride-and-joy Land Rover Discovery which was once owned by the star was stolen from a city garage - leaving behind only its front bumper.
The Land Rover Discover was taken from a body shop where it was being restored while the owner, Tony Daniels, was away on business.
Colin Lloyd, owner of Lloyd's Refinishers Ltd, arrived at his body shop to discover the alarm blazing and the car missing - with only the front bumper remaining.
Now Colin is appealing for help, so that he can return Clapton's clapped out Discovery to Tony before he returns home at Christmas.
Tony Daniels, an ex-marine from Plymouth, is currently working security overseas, and handed over his beloved motor to Colin to fix.
The car, a Land Rover Discovery 3 TDV6 HSE, needed some major work so the front bumper was removed, and the front wings were stripped back and covered in primer.
But Colin had only half finished the job, and left the car in bits while we waited to finish the work.
But that didn't stop the thieves, who broke into the unit with bolt cutters and stole what remained of the car.
Colin said: "Tony booked the car in with us to be repaired while he was away, and we had to deliver it before he got back at Christmas, so there was no rush.
"We've dealt with Tony before, he's a good man.
"We were taking our time, and the front bumper was off and the car was full of hand tools, because we were still working with it.
"He's a big Clapton fan so this car is his pride and joy, one of the reasons he bought the car was because Clapton had owned it, so it's one of a kind really.
"I came in and the alarm was going off and the car was gone.
"The thieves used bolt croppers to break the secure shutters.
"The car, which was once owned by Eric Clapton, was missing its front bumper and the front wings were painted in primer, so it may still be local or have been loaded on to a trailer.
"Tony is desperate for its return and no amount of insurance money will ever replace it.
"I think they were targeting Land Rovers specifically, because another was stolen in the area recently in the same manner.
"We are devastated that the car was stolen from us, it was Tony's pride and joy and we were looking forward to returning it to him in better condition than when we got it."
A reward is now being offered for the car, which bears the registration plate 'T3 CDO'.
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