The guitar favoured by the E Street Band’s Steve Van Zandt and Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers has been stolen from a Hampton music shop.

The £1,400 six-stringed ruby red Rickenbacker 620 guitar was hanging in the front window of Hill Sound, in High Street, before a man took it off the wall and left the shop at 2.20pm on August 28, a police spokesman said.

Hill Sound manager, Nigel Webb, who has worked at the shop since last December, said he was filled with horror when he realised the valuable instrument was missing.

He said: “He was literally in the shop for about a minute.

“He snuck in, picked it off the wall and snuck out. He was as bold as that.

“It’s very sad and you don’t get cover from the insurance if it isn’t a forced entry."

He added: "You’ve to admire his guts but maybe not his brains.”

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Bold: The inside of the music shop

Richmond’s police have asked anyone who recognises the man in the photo, believed to be aged between 25 and 30, to call 101. To remain anonymous call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.