A suspect has walked out of a police station - with a 26 inch flat screen television.

The TV was one of dozens of items stolen from stations across Sussex.

The list includes bicycles, police radios, clothing and even the £500 LCD TV.

Details emerged in a dossier of lost and stolen items over trhe last three years released in response to a Freedom of Information Act made by The Argus.

With breath-taking impudence, thieves have looted belongings from marked police cars and even police stations.

In 2006 burglars stole two helmets and two tops adorned with the Sussex Police logo from a police station yard. Later that year an envelope containing £130 went missing from a station, and a pair of combat trousers were taken from a locker.

A total of six police jackets were stolen over the past three years. All remain in the hands of the thieves, and while some may simply be paraded among friends as an outlaw's trophy, they could prove a useful tool for confidence tricksters. A couple of reflective jackets were stolen from a police locker which was found levered open, one was stolen from an officer's flat and three jackets were stolen from cars left unlocked while officers dealt with emergency calls.

A stab vest was also stolen from a police station, and keys from the ignition of a moped and a police car.

And last October - the very month when police were setting up a nationwide task force to tackle a steep rise in thefts of metal - thieves clambered over a wall into a police station yard and made off with a pile of scrap aluminium.

A burglar stole a warrant card, police driving licence, baton and handcuffs from a police officer's home while they were sleeping.

Satellite navigation systems, CD players, mobile phones and a handbag have been stolen from cars.

The records handed to the Argus include flatbed trailers and satellite navigation systems stolen from 'bait' cars as part of sting operations. Though these resulted in numerous arrests, on a couple of occasions the items have not been recovered.

In October last year a satellite navigation system worth several hundred pounds was stolen from a bait car, but the suspect was not caught.

Incredibly, some criminals even tried to make off with police property while under arrest.

Last March a suspect hid a police hat under his clothes while being driven home by officers, though they quickly recovered the souvenir Another dim-witted criminal stole an epaulette from a police officer's jacket while being taken into custody - but was caught out when he was searched at the station.

Last year a man grabbed a police officer's hat and mobile phone from him while he was grappling with a suspect, and a traffic warden had his hat stolen from his head.

In 2005 a man approached a pair of officers on patrol and grabbed an airwave radio from his belt. He ran away but dropped the radio when the officer chased after him. An airwave radio, which is worth £750, was also stolen from a flat and another was dropped on a pathway.

A £1,000 generator being used at a bonfire night was taken, and a petrol generator was stolen from a van.

The list does not include personal belongings stolen from officers. There were red faces at Arundel police station last May when a burglar got past a coded entry system and into the staff locker room before rifling through bags and finding a set of car keys. The thief got into the car park compound at the back of the police station and made his escape in a police officer's own Fiat Bravo.

A police spokesman said that many of the thefts took place while police officers were busy dealing with crimes.

He added: "We regularly keep under review the security of police stations."

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