J.K. Rowling is asking her fans to cast a Lumos spell in the hopes of helping police solve a pretty serious case.

The Harry Potter author used Twitter Friday to send out an open call, pleading with her followers not to buy a handwritten, one-of-a-kind copy of a prequel to the iconic series that was stolen in a burglary last month in Kings Heath, Birmingham, England.

“PLEASE DON’T BUY THIS IF YOU’RE OFFERED IT,” tweeted Rowling, 51. “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

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The story, personally written by Rowling, was auctioned off for charity. Plucked from the owner’s home between April 13 and 24 along with an undisclosed amount of jewelry, the handwritten, highly valuable piece exists on the front and back of a 6-by-8-inch postcard.

West Midlands Police in England are calling for Rowling’s fans to assist in spreading their message of an appeal, with Investigating Officer PC Paul Jauncey writing, “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.”

The story, penned personally by @jk_rowling over 2 sides of an A5 postcard is extremely valuable & stolen during a burglary in #KingsHeath pic.twitter.com/Aio04lVjFt — West Midlands Police (@WMPolice) May 12, 2017

West Midland law-enforcement officials are asking anyone who knows the whereabouts of the story to contact them.</s>J.K. Rowling is warning ‘Harry Potter’ fans not to dish out any money for a handwritten Harry Potter prequel that was stolen.

Someone purchased the prequel at a 2008 charity auction for about $40k. Last month, someone broke into that person’s home and stole it. Cops still haven’t made any arrests, but J.K. made a plea today urging Potter fans to not purchase it.</s>A Harry Potter prequel handwritten on a postcard by author J K Rowling has been stolen in a burglary in Birmingham, England, the media reported on Friday.

 

 The manuscript was penned on both sides of an A5 card for a charity auction nine years ago and sold for 25,000 pounds ($32,130), the BBC reported.

 

 The untitled 800-word work was taken from Howard Road, Kings Heath.

 

 Reportedly set three years before Harry Potter's birth, it features the schoolboy wizard's father James Potter, and godfather Sirius Black, when they were teenagers.

 

 They are confronted by two "muggle" policemen after a high-speed motorbike chase but manage to escape on broomsticks.

 

 The manuscript was stolen during a break-in between April 13 and 24, West Midlands Police said.

 

 The force is issuing a plea for information almost one month on, in the hope "the appeal goes far and wide among Harry Potter fans throughout the world"., reports the BBC.

 

 "The only people who will buy this unique piece are true Harry Potter fans," investigating officer PC Paul Jauncey said.

 

 "We are appealing to anyone who sees, or is offered this item for sale, to contact police."

 

 The prequel was among several works donated by authors to an auction held in 2008 to raise funds for English PEN, which promotes understanding through literature, and Dyslexia Action.</s>A rare Harry Potter prequel handwritten by author J.K. Rowling on a postcard was stolen during a burglary in central England, police said Friday as they appealed for help from fans of the wizard across the world.

The 800-word story, set three years before Harry Potter is born and which sold for 25,000 pounds ($32,152) at a charity auction in 2008, was stolen from a property in Birmingham between April 13-24.

“Please don’t buy this if you’re offered it,” Rowling wrote on Twitter. “Originally auctioned for @englishpen, the owner supported writers’ freedoms by bidding for it.”

The proceeds of the auction were donated to English PEN, an organization that champions freedom of expression, and to Dyslexia Action.

“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,” said Constable Paul Jauncey from West Midlands Police.

Handwritten over two sides of an A5 postcard, the untitled prequel features the characters Sirius Black and Harry’s father, James. It opens with a youthful Sirius and James cornered by two irate policemen at the end of a high-speed motorcycle chase.

After an exchange of words with the policemen, the two teenagers make their escape using a touch of magic. The card concludes with the words “From the prequel I am not working on — but that was fun!”

More than 450 million copies of the seven original Harry Potter books have been sold worldwide in 79 languages. The movie franchise has grossed more than $7 billion worldwide.</s>A Harry Potter prequel, which was handwritten by author JK Rowling on a postcard, was stolen from Howard Road in Birmingham. The West Midlands Police have asked fans to share their appeal to help recover the manuscript, which was stolen along with some jewellery between April 13 and 24.

The manuscript and jewellery were taken during the break-in between 13 and 24 April, West Midlands Police said. On Twitter, Rowling said “Please do not buy this if you are offered it. Originally auctioned for @englishpen, the owner supported writers’ freedoms by bidding for it.”

The manuscript was written on both sides of an A5 card for a charity auction nine years ago and sold for £25,000 (approximately Rs 20 lakh). The work is set three years before the protagonist Harry Potter’s birth and revolves around an adventure his father, James Potter, and godfather Sirius Black had as teenagers. The two characters were stopped by two “muggle” (non-wizard) policemen during a high-speed motorbike chase. The story concludes with them fleeing on broomsticks.</s>A rare Harry Potter prequel handwritten by author JK Rowling on a postcard has been stolen during a burglary in England, police said, as they appealed for help from fans across the world.

The 800-word story, which sold for about $43,000 at a charity auction in 2008, is set three years before the protagonist of the series, Harry Potter, was born.

Handwritten over two sides of an A5 postcard, the untitled prequel features Harry's father James Potter and his friend Sirius Black.

It opens with the youthful pair cornered by two irate policemen at the end of a high-speed motorcycle chase.

After an exchange of words with the policemen, the two teenagers make their escape using a touch of magic.

The card concludes with the words: "From the prequel I am not working on — but that was fun!"

Rowling asked fans to not buy the story, which was stolen from a property in Birmingham between April 13 and 24.

The proceeds of the auction were donated to English PEN, an organisation which champions freedom of expression, and to Dyslexia Action.

"The only people who will buy this unique piece are true Harry Potter fans," West Midlands Police Constable Paul Jauncey said.

"We are appealing to anyone who sees, or is offered this item for sale, to contact police."

More than 450 million copies of the seven original Harry Potter books have been sold worldwide in 79 languages.

A script book based on the stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child — set 19 years after the final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — was released last year.</s>A rare Harry Potter prequel handwritten by author JK Rowling on a postcard has been stolen during a burglary in central England, police said today as they appealed for help from fans of the wizard across the world. The 800-word story, set three years before Harry Potter is born and which sold for 25,000 pounds at a charity auction in 2008, was stolen from a property in Birmingham between April 13-24.

Start the conversation, or Read more at The Daily Star.</s>In case you’re into selling literature on the black market, here’s a head’s up: an untitled Harry Potter prequel handwritten on a postcard by her highness J.K. Rowling has been stolen in a burglary in Birmingham, England.

The work is considered “extremely valuable,” obviously, and is written on both sides of an A5 card, coming in at 800 words. It was sold at a charity auction in 2008 at Sotheby’s for a breathtaking $44,000 (£25,000).

But don’t mistake this burglar for being particularly pedantic in his pilfering. He also swiped a stack of jewelry from the same home, all of which happened some time between April 13 and 24.

West Midlands Police issued an alert and call for information in the hope that “the appeal goes far and wide among Harry Potter fans throughout the world.” Why they decided to issue a statement nearly a month after the theft is unclear. But then again, what does one expect from mere muggles?

According to The Telegraph, investigating officer PC Paul Jauncey said, “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.”

Rowling has informed her fans via Twitter not to buy it if they do encounter it, as its intention was to raise money for English PEN and Dyslexia Action.

The prequel is reportedly set three years before Harry is born, and follows his father, James, and godfather, Sirius Black, when they were teenagers. In the story, they are confronted by two muggle policemen after a motorcycle chase. Naturally, they manage to escape on broomsticks. Kinda makes you wanna find it, doesn’t it?</s>An untitled Harry Potter prequel handwritten on a postcard by JK Rowling has been stolen in a burglary in Birmingham.

The "extremely valuable" 800-word work was penned on both sides of the A5 card for a charity auction nine years ago and sold for £25,000 at Sotheby's.

The manuscript and a quantity of jewellery were stolen from a property in Howard Road, Kings Heath, during a break-in between April 13 and 24.

West Midlands Police have issued a plea for information in the hope that "the appeal goes far and wide among Harry Potter fans throughout the world."

Investigating officer PC Paul Jauncey said: "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."</s>The proceeds from the auction were donated to English PEN, an organisation which champions freedom of expression, and to Dyslexia Action.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS - A rare Harry Potter prequel handwritten by author J.K. Rowling on a postcard has been stolen during a burglary in central England, police said on Friday as they appealed for help from fans of the wizard across the world.The 800-word story, set three years before Harry Potter is born and which sold for 25,000 pounds ($32,152) at a charity auction in 2008, was stolen from a property in Birmingham between 13-24 April.“Please don’t buy this if you’re offered it,” Rowling wrote on Twitter. “Originally auctioned for @englishpen, the owner supported writers’ freedoms by bidding for it.”
British author J. K. Rowling urges fans to refrain from buying a manuscript written by her, a Harry Potter prequel, which was originally auctioned off for charity but was later stolen.