A missing trailer filled with surfboards and wetsuits has been returned to a Nobbys Beach surf school, after it was recovered from bushland near Medowie on Friday morning.
Police have charged a man from Bateau Bay in relation to the incident.
Dean Smith, the owner of Surfest Surf School, said he picked up the van on Friday afternoon.
“Driving on the way back with the trailer you could hear people cheering and beeping at us,” he said.
Mr Smith said he was grateful for the public’s support in finding the van. Posts on social media about the vehicle’s disappearance were widely shared.
“The community came together to help out and we’ve come out with a victory,” he said.
Raymond Terrace police officers said they were able to locate the vehicle because of tip-offs from the public.
Police saw the vehicle being driven into bushland behind Pacific Dunes in Medowie at 6am on Friday.
Police have charged a 36-year-old man from Bateau Bay for the theft of the vehicle.
He will appear at Raymond Terrace Local Court on November 12.
The Surfest trailer went missing from opposite Nobbys Beach Surf Life Saving Club on Shortland Esplanade on Wednesday night.
“The instructors went to the beach to run a school lesson and the trailer was gone,” Mr Smith said.
Classes at the surf school were cancelled on Thursday and Friday.
Mr Smith said he was relieved the van, filled with the school’s equipment, had been returned before the weekend.
“It was just in time for our program tomorrow,” he said.
“We have 100 girls coming for our demo day, and it’s great news we will still be able to run the lesson.”
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