J.K. Rowling wrote on Twitter early Friday to seek help from her fans. She revealed that she previously wrote a prequel to Harry Potter and auctioned the story off for charity, ET reports.
But the postcard containing the story was stolen and police are now trying to get the tale back to its legal owner.
“Police have issued an appeal after a rare Harry Potter prequel, handwritten by the author J K Rowling, was stolen during a burglary in Kings Heath. The story, penned personally by Rowling over two sides of an A5 postcard is extremely valuable,” the West Midlands Police Department said in a statement on Friday, showing a photograph of the missing document.
According to ET, the robbery occurred in late April, but police were unable to arrest any suspects or recover the stolen document. They considered appealing to Potter fans to help solve the case.
“The only people who will buy this unique piece are true Harry Potter fans. We are appealing to anyone who sees, or is offered this item for sale, to contact police,” Investigating Officer PC Paul Jauncey said in a statement.
Rowling also tweeted to her more than 10 million fans, writing, “PLEASE DON’T BUY THIS IF YOU’RE OFFERED IT. Originally auctioned for @englishpen, the owner supported writers’ freedoms by bidding for it.”
PLEASE DON'T BUY THIS IF YOU'RE OFFERED IT. Originally auctioned for @englishpen, the owner supported writers' freedoms by bidding for it. https://t.co/ljEQyyj9yY
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) May 12, 2017
Until now, Potter fans have no idea that a prequel story existed. The bestselling author has focused on various Potter-adjacent projects in the last few years, including writing the script for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, a story that exists in the wizarding world. But fans have long requested for a tale about Harry’s parents and the Marauders.
