Thieves chopped down trees and may have used heavy lifting gear to steal a luxury hot tub from a house near Canterbury.

The £9,000 Hot Spring Envoy hot tub, which has a built-in music system, was taken from a garden in Station Road, Patrixbourne.

Police have only just released details of the theft, which happened some time betwen 9am on December 6 and 2pm on December 8.

Investigating officer PC Karen Robson said: "This wasn't the work of an opportunist – the thieves have gone to extreme lengths to steal this hot tub.

"They have cut down two trees and may have used a vehicle with lifting equipment to lift it over the boundary fence. Otherwise several people would have been needed to remove it."

When it was installed just over a year ago, the hot tub had to be lifted into the garden using a crane because it was too wide to fit through the gate to the property.

It weighs around 400kg when empty and is more than two metres wide.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Kent Police on 101 or Kent Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.