Thief said 'sorry' to woman, 101, as he stole medals

A 101-year-old woman is hoping for the safe return of her late husband's war medals after they were stolen from her home.

Betty Rout said she "wasn't scared" when she got up to see what was happening after being woken by two people breaking into her Gloucestershire home.

She said one of the offenders told her he was "sorry" as the pair made off with a safe containing the medals.

Insp Alec Linton from Gloucestershire Police described the burglary as "a particularly callous crime" and "very cowardly act".

After she woke up between 22.00 BST and midnight on 28 June, Mrs Rout saw two people leaving her kitchen.

She realised the next day that her handbags, some documents and a safe were gone.

Six medals awarded to Stephen Rout were stolen

The safe contained six medals and uniform patches which her late husband, Stephen Rout, was awarded in World War Two.

While the medals are of huge sentimental value to Mrs Rout, her family said they would be of no financial value.

"It would be very nice if somebody could just return them anonymously, that would be the best thing," Robin Rout, Mrs Rout's son, said.

"It's things like this that destroy confidence and therefore may compromise her ability to live here alone, which I think would be a shame because she's managed it all this time and wants to continue to live here," he added.

Insp Linton urged the people who had taken the medals to return them, and warned they were likely to get reported if they tried to sell them.

Police are appealing for anyone with information about the burglary or the whereabouts of the medals to come forward.

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