Engines worth £20,000 have been stolen from three fishing boats in a “targeted theft” in Fife.
Thieves broke through a padlocked gate at West Wemyss harbour.
It is thought they then used a van to make off with the heavy equipment.
Labour councillor Tom Adams, who lives in the village, described Monday night’s incident as shocking.
It follows a string of deliberate fires several months ago, which left villagers in fear.
However, it is not clear if it is linked.
Mr Adams said: “They’ve come down and cut cables in three boats and taken three engines.
“They took four bolts off each boat. They’re 60-horsepower outboard engines and one of them was brand new.
“It’s absolutely shocking.
“We don’t know if this follows on from what was going on before or if it’s something else.”
‘It looks like a targeted theft’
The three boats involved are used for pleasure and are not commercial fishing boats.
All were out of the water at the time of the thefts.
Mr Adams added: “It’s disgusting someone would do something like that.
“It’s another thing our wee village could do without.
“These things are really, really heavy so it would definitely need two or three people to lift them.
“It looks like a targeted theft by people who knew what they were doing.”
The area surrounding West Wemyss Boat Club was hit by four deliberate fires over two months in 2023.
A dead deer was dumped in the club’s doorway the night before one of the blazes, in what was feared to be a “Godfather-style threat”.
And some villagers believe it was a reference to the Francis Ford Coppola blockbuster The Godfather, starring Al Pacino and Marlon Brando, where a horse’s head is left in a character’s bed as a sign of intimidation.
Police are investigating this week’s thefts and confirmed enquiries are ongoing.
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