A man and a woman have been arrested in eastern Europe in connection with a quarter-of-a-million-pound art heist at an Aberdeenshire estate 15 years ago.
Two paintings worth £250,000 were stolen from comedian Billy Connolly’s then-neighbours at Candacraig.
A 66-year-old man and a 60-year-old woman were detained in the Burga area of Bulgaria last month.
Police said they were due to appear at Aberdeen Sheriff Court yesterday.
But the Crown Office could not confirm whether the case was heard.
The paintings by Scottish colourists George Leslie Hunter and Francis C B Cadell were taken from a property in Strathdon.
The still life paintings belonged to Liz and Harry Young and were bequeathed to Mr Young by his mother.
The couple ran a plant nursery at Candacraig Gardens before the property was combined with Candacraig House – which had belonged to Mr Connolly before being sold for a reported £3million in August 2014.
At the time the paintings were estimated as being worth between £75,000-£125,000 each.
Mr and Mrs Young offered a reward of £10,000 for the recovery of the uninsured artworks the time of the theft.
They were believed to have been taken between July 17 and 18, 2001, and the couple believed they may have been stolen to order.
The Cadell painting is an oil on wood in a plain white frame, and shows roses in a vase on a black lacquered table and includes the red chair which appeared in a number of his works.
The Hunter one was in a beige moulded frame and depicts a vase of flowers.
Both were recovered in 2008 after one was spotted in a Sotheby’s auction catalogue.
A police spokeswoman said: “Police Scotland can confirm that two people have been arrested in relation to the alleged theft of two paintings from a property within the grounds of Candacraig, Strathdon, in July 2001.
“A 66-year-old man and a 60-year-old woman were both arrested in the Burgas region of Bulgaria on Thursday, May 26, 2016.
“The arrests were carried out by police in Bulgaria after Police Scotland sought and was granted a European arrest warrant.”
