Victoria Vancouver Island British Columbia - The Royal British Columbia Museum discovered there's no honour among thieves as a pair of bandits made off with a collection of prized watches, including a gold pocket watch that once belonged to legendary train robber Bill Miner.
 
Victoria Police said Thursday they recovered the watches, including Miner's 1901 model, and a man and woman face theft-related charges after their arrests at an apartment in Port Alberni.
 
Sgt. Colin Brown called the museum theft a crime of opportunity by people who were likely looking to trade the watches for drugs or cash and didn't know or appreciate their historical value.
 
Museum chief executive officer Jack Lohman praised the efforts of the police who used fingerprint evidence left on the glass case that held the watches and then worked their street contacts to recover the artifacts.
 
Lohman said the watches date back to the turn of the century and are extremely valuable to the museum for their historical significance, especially the time piece associated with Miner.
 
"I don't think you can put a value on your own history, can you?" he said.
 
"Clearly, people have an intent of selling these, but actually they're priceless."
 
Lohman said the police cracked the case in less than a week.
 
The theft was reported last Friday, the arrests were made Wednesday, and the watches were recovered in Victoria.

Author unknown.
 
Editor's Note:  Read more about Bill Miner here.