Thieves netted goods worth more than £70,000 during an afternoon break-in.

A top silver Mercedes 350 Si worth £60,000, a £9,000 Cartier watch, a Cannon digital camera and a Sanyo laptop were just some of the items taken during the raid.

The thieves ransacked the home in Burges Road, Thorpe Bay, during the burglary which took place between 12.20pm and 6pm on Monday.

The Mercedes, which has the registration plate C5, was taken after thieves took the car keys from inside the house.

Police spokeswoman Julia Pack said: "This is obviously a very high value burglary which involves a very distinctive car being stolen."