A priceless seventh-century bronze statue that is believed to have been looted 15 years ago is to be returned to Vietnam.

The two-metre tall statue which represents the Hindu Goddess Kali Durga was allegedly stolen in 2008 from a Unesco World Heritage Site in the Quang Nam province of Vietnam called My Son Sanctuary.

The 250kg statue was recovered after specialist Metropolitan Police detectives and US Homeland Security focused their attention on Douglas Latchford, a dealer and collector of artefacts from across south-east Asia, who bought it in 2009.

Latchford had been at the centre of a long-running investigation into the alleged looting of cultural property from the 1970s onwards.

The statue was handed over to officials at the Vietnam Embassy in London in a ceremony on Wednesday.

It came after a formal request was made to the Met for their assistance by US Homeland Security officials, in New York.

They had opened an investigation in 2017 into Latchford over alleged antique thefts. Latchford died in 2020.

Dc Ray Swan, of the Met’s Art and Antiques Unit, said: “We are delighted that this phase of the investigation has now come to a positive conclusion.

“We are happy that this part of Vietnam’s heritage will be returning to its home 15 years after it was stolen, and are proud of the Met’s role in its recovery.

“It is particularly fitting that this should take place this year, which marks 50 years of diplomatic relations between the UK and Vietnam”.