Philharmonic musician's instruments stolen

The prized flute and piccolo of a New York Philharmonic musician were stolen early Sunday from an Upper West Side bar, NYPD said.

The instruments -- worth a combined $42,000 -- belonged to Alexandra Sopp, 28, police said, a Juilliard-trained principal flutist and soloist who has worked with Björk and Philip Glass.

Sopp, of Brooklyn, detailed the incident in a Facebook post Sunday that read, "Public Safety Announcement! Ladies and Gentlemen, WATCH YOUR FLUTES!"

The instruments were returned later Sunday to Sopp, and Upper West Side resident Gary Richards, 48, was arrested and charged with grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property in the theft, police said.

Police said a witness provided a description of the suspect and an investigation led them to Richards' home, where security footage showed he had arrived with what looked like Sopp's property. Sopp had performed a show called "Contact!" Saturday evening at Symphony Space, according to the Philharmonic's website.

Later that night, Sopp was at a nearby bar, where police responded about 3 a.m. Sunday to a report that her bag had been stolen with the instruments inside, the NYPD said.

An employee at Dive Bar, on Amsterdam Avenue, declined to comment about the case Sunday.

Sopp, on her Facebook page, explained what happened in the bar: "Turned my back, guy reaches through the window and takes my bag."

"We are reunited," Sopp wrote of her instruments.