Designer clothes worth more than £70,000 stolen from car in Belgravia

A designer who has dressed the Royal Family has had more than £70,000 of clothing stolen.

More than 60 pieces of couture clothing by Claire Mischevani were stolen in Belgravia, central London, at about 20:00 GMT on 16 February.

It happened when the designer and another woman were loading clothes into a Range Rover, the Met said.

A man, 23, has been arrested in connection with the investigation and has been bailed until May.

During the incident, a man in a balaclava shouted at Ms Mischevani and another woman to go inside.

Ms Mischevani, who has dressed several members of the Royal Family including Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, and Zara Tindall, said the incident had had a "profound and devastating impact" on her sense of safety.

In a statement the Met said the items were stolen following a fashion shoot.

The women were loading the car with clothes when they returned to the house in Chester Row to get further items, the force said.

Hearing a car alarm, they ran outside to find three men dressed in black, wearing balaclavas, standing next to the vehicle, having smashed one of its windows,

A spokesperson said one of the men allegedly spotted the women and ran towards them while holding the item used to smash the window, shouting at them to get back inside the address.

The Met added the women ran back into the house and locked the door "in fear of their safety" before calling police and watching the men from a window.

The statement said: "They watched the suspects smash additional windows of the car before stealing a navy suitcase, black overnight bag and 15 garment bags of various sizes - all of which contained the various pieces.

"Following the incident, the suspects drove off towards Eaton Terrace in a black Volkswagen Golf."

Det Con Charlotte Palul said: "The victim has been left not only traumatised following such a terrifying ordeal, but understandably completely devastated at the loss of a number of one-off creations which are the result of many months of work.

"I think it's highly likely the suspects had no idea what they were stealing, mistaking the items for something else. So it's possible that when they discovered what was inside those suit covers they have discarded them, not realising their monetary or, more importantly, sentimental value. It is of course also possible they have tried to sell them."

Det Con Palul urged anyone with information to contact police. Images of some of the items taken have been released online.

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