Love Island ITV
ITV

A Love Island couple has been left devastated after a sex tape they recorded shortly after the hit ITV 2 show concluded earlier this year was stolen from a motorway service station near Peterborough. The couple's identity has been kept a secret.

The "tasteful" tape was lost by publicist Rob Cooper, who had been given a copy by the couple after they agreed to make it public "on the condition that it was worth more than £100k," Cooper told The Mirror.

Police are investigating the incident and a reward of £25,000 - split between Cooper and the couple - has been offered for the tape's safe return.

"The laptop and three SD cards were in a laptop sleeve placed in the footwell on the passenger side alongside some paperwork," Cooper claims.

"I was on the phone to another client via a handsfree kit, so when I pulled into the services I ended the call at 6:06pm, then after spending ten minutes inside I reconnected the phone and continued my journey at 6:17pm, that's how I can be so specific on timings.

"When I returned to the car, I noticed that the door was slightly jarred open, however, there was a Louis Vuitton backpack on the back seat which was still there so I assumed I was just being paranoid - when I got home I realised the laptop sleeve was gone along with its contents."

This included the sex tape. The couple in question had been hopeful that they might be able to strike a deal for its release with Vivid Entertainment, the company responsible for marketing the tapes of Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton.

"All SD cards that contain un-airbrushed images of celebrities or any other content that may be seen as sensitive are stored in individual zip lock bags with coded security tape, this is to ensure that anyone handling the images are held accountable for the seal being damaged," Cooper explained.

"If the images get into the wrong hands, they could be uploaded online, that's why we've decided to make it public and offer a generous reward for their safe return of the individually coded bag."

"The images are worthless to anyone who may have them, they are classed as stolen goods and if the images were to be uploaded then the vendor is committing revenge porn, which is obviously illegal."

The £25,000 reward will be paid in full if the seal on the card has not been broken. If it has been opened or tampered with £10,000 will be paid with three further yearly £5,000 payments as long as a copy doesn't end up online.

"If the footage is returned and does not appear online then that's the end of it," Cooper added.