Dorothy Mayer wants to meet burglar of Cardiff home

A grieving pensioner, whose home was burgled the day before her grandson's funeral, says she wants to meet the thief who ransacked her home.

Dorothy Mayer returned from hospital to find cash, jewellery, a purse and phone had been stolen from her Cardiff home.

"I would love to meet him face to face and talk to him as a mother. I don't mean any damage to him, but there's got to be a reason," she said.

Now she is urging the offender to turn himself in.

Mrs Mayer, 79, returned to her home in Fairwater on 17 January after an appointment in hospital to find her front door was locked from the inside.

Her house had been ransacked and some belongings, including her wedding and engagement rings and a ring owned by her late husband, stolen.

'Cold turkey'

The burglary happened the day before Mrs Mayer was to attend her grandson's funeral in Birmingham.

Christopher Vaughan, 18, drowned at Weymouth Harbour on 9 January.

Now, Mrs Mayer has written the open letter in the hope it will encourage the person responsible, or anyone with information, to come forward.

She has also released a photo of the mess the intruder left behind.

Her letter reads: "Pity you didn't wait one more day, you would have had the house to yourself and maybe left it as you found it, clean and tidy, not like a tip."

"I do hope you made a mistake and are caught.

"If it is stealing to pay for drugs you need help before it kills you, I would like to suggest you are made to go cold turkey and clean up your way of life."

'Mercilessly ransacked'

Mrs Mayer told BBC Radio 5live the burglary had left her on edge and she was having trouble sleeping.

She said she wanted to meet the person responsible to ask him why they did it.

"I would love to meet him face to face and talk to him as a mother. I don't mean any damage to him, but there has got to be a reason and it's got to be stopped," she said.

"People just can't be robbed all the time. It's not fair that we can't leave our homes and be content and happy without worrying about locking this and locking that.

"It's a horrible way to live"

Police believe the intruder gained access to the back of the house using a footpath.

Once inside, they changed a bedroom light bulb, possibly to help them see what they were stealing.

Det Con Geraint Higgins said Mrs Mayer had been left devastated by what had happened.

"Whoever was responsible mercilessly ransacked her home to look for something to steal," he said.

"The victim has shown tremendous bravery and we are appealing for information that will help us make an arrest."

Detectives believe the culprit is local to the area and say the house was burgled between 1300 GMT and 1530 GMT.

Anyone with information is asked to contact South Wales Police on 101.

The mess left in Mrs Mayer's home after the break-in