Vandals cause £100k of damage to Masonic temple for £50 worth of tiles

Thieves ripped off lead tiles from the roof of the Masonic temple

The Dalkeith Kilwinning Masonic Lodge, which is believed to be the oldest operating Masonic temple in the world, was badly damaged after thieves ripped the lead slates from the roof.

The vandals also damaged a children's nursery next door when they hacked newly-planted trees in half.

Club treasurer, Alex Turner, said a caretaker had discovered the extensive damage last Wednesday morning while he was inspecting the fire exits.

Mr Turner, who lives in Dalkeith, said: "I don't know why somebody would do this, are people getting that desperate in this economic climate? They've ripped away around four yards of lead that isn't even worth too much.

"In doing that, they've damaged the roof and the bricking and tiling. Police told me the lead was only worth about 50. The nursery next door was meant to be having a graduation ceremony in the hall that day.

"The caretaker let them in and he was showing the teachers around the fire escapes when he realised one of the doors was awkward to open. It was being blocked by a piece of masonry that had fallen from the roof.

"Part of the building dates back to 1766 and it is the oldest operating Masonic temple in the world. The lodge is an impressive building and it has a lot of history attached to it.

"It's clear they've done a lot of damage because they didn't know what they were doing, they've just ripped at the lead."

President Samuel Mitchell added: "As I understand it, this is quite a widespread practice. The lead will be worth something in the scrap metal industry."

It has been estimated that repairing the damage will cost around 100,000 due to the age and construction of the building.

Katrina Weir, manager at the Happy Days nursery, said they had been "disappointed" to find their new trees chopped in half. She said: "They vandalised three of our trees. We'd just planted them but they cut them in half. The building next door is unused and it seems they gained access from there."

There have been a number of lead thefts across the Capital in recent months. Damage costing thousands of pounds has been caused to properties across Leith after buildings including the Citadel Youth Centre, Leith Theatre, South Leith Parish Church and the former Bonnington Primary School were targeted for their lead.

A spokesman for Lothian and Borders Police said: "We are investigating after tiles were stolen from the roof of a property on Dalkeith High Street. The theft took place some time between 12pm on June 7 and 8am on June 8. Anyone who saw any suspicious activity in the area and can assist with our inquiries should contact the police immediately."