Students reunited with stolen sofa from Dawlish Road garden

A group of students living on Dawlish Road have spoken out about their ordeal of having their prized three-seater sofa stolen on Saturday night, telling The Birmingham Tab that "the sentimental loss was immeasurable".

Following a plea on Fab n Fresh, the housemates were contacted by a fellow UoB student pleading guilty to the crime, stating that they took the "beautifully handcrafted 3 seat Italian leather sofa" so a friend visiting uni for the weekend had somewhere to sleep other than the floor.

the post on Fab n Fresh

Many are familiar with the group's unusual set up which includes a three-seater, two-seater, and matching armchair, all adorning the group's garden facing onto the busy and bustling Dawlish Road. Ben Barnett, a member of the distraught household, told The Birmingham Tab that although they only acquired the set a few weeks ago, it has become a firm favourite and prize possessions.

He said: "during the Great Winter Heatwave of February we spent most days sat out on the sofa, soaking in the rays eating ice creams and drinking beers pretending summer had come early."

The loss of the sofa led to Ben posting on Fab pleading for the safe return of the integral part of the house, stipulating a "reward for this sofa and a bounty on the head of those who plucked it from beneath us."

The distraught housemates quickly set about constructing a timeline of the crime, figuring that it disappeared some time between two of the housemates returning from a house party at 3:30am and another returning from a library all-nighter at 6:30am, with the keen library-goer noting the absence of the sofa.

Quickly recruiting a search party, the wronged housemates were unable to locate their fallen soldier, despite walking up and down all the main roads of Selly to see "if any jealous people had stolen it to add to their collection." They subsequently posted on Fab n Fresh, and by the evening, "after going through the stages of denial, anger, bargaining, and depression", someone messaged them owning up to the crime.

"Someone messaged me owning up to it, saying they took it for their friend who was visiting, so they didn't have to sleep on the floor". Ben holds no harsh feelings though, telling us "We don't hold anything against those who stole it, but at this stage just want its safe return!"

For now, the group are just happy to be reunited, saying "we have only had the sofa for a few weeks, but those few weeks were the best of our lives."