Stolen items belonging to John Lennon unearthed by German police

Glasses beloging to John Lennon with a prescription by optician Gary Tracy on show at police headquarters in Berlin
Glasses beloging to John Lennon with a prescription by optician Gary Tracy on show at police headquarters in Berlin Credit: AP Photo/Markus Schreiber

Diaries, prescription glasses and a cigarette case are among some 100 items belonging to John Lennon that have been recovered in Berlin after they were allegedly stolen by Yoko Ono's driver in 2006, German police have said.

The suspect, Koral Karsan, lives in Turkey and is currently out of reach of German law enforcement,  police said as they presented the late Beatle's rediscovered personal effects at a press conference.

The former chauffeur worked for Ms Ono, Lennon's widow, from 1995 to 2006. He already spent 60 days in jail in 2007 in the United States for trying to blackmail Ms Ono.

"We believe (he) is guilty and the suspected thief of the objects," Carsten Pfohl of Berlin's criminal police office told reporters.

A recording made during a Beatles concert on show
A recording made during a Beatles concert on show Credit: Erbil Basay/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

The items were stolen from Ms Ono's New York home in 2006.

A total of 86 items - including postcards, letters, handwritten music scores and two pairs of Lennon's trademark round glasses - were discovered at a bankrupt Berlin auction house in July.

More items were found hidden in the car of another suspect in the case, a 58-year-old German national who was arrested Monday on suspicion of fraud and handling stolen goods.

Sheet music once belonging to Lennon
Sheet music once belonging to Lennon Credit: MAURIZIO GAMBARINI/AFP/Getty Images

One of the three diaries from the haul contains an entry penned by Lennon on December 8, 1980 - the day he was shot dead by a disturbed fan outside his Manhattan apartment building.

"We were amazed by what we found," said Berlin prosecutor Michael von Hagen, calling the trove part of "music history".

Lennon and Yoko Ono in New York, 1972 
Lennon and Yoko Ono in New York, 1972  Credit: AP Photo/File

Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote the Beatles' biggest hits before the band split in 1970.

His possessions have since become collectors' items.

A leather jacket supposedly worn by Lennon sold for £10,400 at a UK auction in February.

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