Owners of a haul of stolen fishing equipment worth £17,000 are being traced by police.

Sutton detectives say the equipment, which includes rods, reels, bags, seats, bait boxes, were taken during two burglaries last year.

The first was on Connaught Road, Sutton, on July 4, and the other in Sandy Lane South, Wallington, on July 14.

Some of the reels are estimated to be worth around £700 each.

A police spokesman said one of the owners - an IT systems engineer - identified the majority of his equipment after he saw it advertised on eBay.

An investigation led by Detective Constable Carol Beveridge led to the arrest of a 24-year-old man on suspicion of handling stolen goods at his home address in Morden.

The man has been bailed to return to Sutton Police Station.

Detective Constable Beveridge said she wanted to hear from anyone who has had fishing equipment stolen in a burglary during July 2009 in Sutton and surrounding boroughs.

She can be contacted at Sutton CID on 020 8649 0747.