Man Accused of Stealing Harry Potter Copies

Christopher Brown, accused of stealing two copies of the latest Harry Potter book, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", pleaded not guilty at Kettering Magistrates' Court, Northants to the two charges - one of "assisting in the detention or removal" of the stolen books and one of possession of an offensive weapon.

Brown was caught while he was trying to negotiate the selling of the copies with newspaper reporter John Askill on June 3 this year. The case was moved to Northampton Crown Court because Magistrate Sheila Fairweather considered she can not handle the situation. Brown was released on unconditional bail until August 8.

Last week, Barnes & Noble announced that the advance sales for the sixth Harry Potter book, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", topped 750,000 copies, beating the number of pre-orders for the latest Potter book.