Police appeal after Ben Stokes' County Durham home burgled while wife and children inside
by Nicole Goodwin · ChronicleLivePolice are appealing for information following a burglary at the home of England cricket captain Ben Stokes'.
The all-rounder took to social media on Wednesday to reveal that a gang of masked intruders had burgled his home in Castle Eden, County Durham, while his wife and two young children were inside. The 33-year-old was away leading England in their Test tour of Pakistan at the time.
He added that several sentimental items were taken in the burglary, which occurred on October 17, and shared photos of the stolen goods. The items included Stokes' OBE for services to cricket and a specially engraved ring with the England logo.
Today, Durham Constabulary confirmed that an investigation was ongoing into the incident and appealed for anyone with information to get in touch.
In a post on social media the force said: "Officers are appealing for information following a burglary of a cricketer's home in Castle Eden. Police were called following the incident on Thursday, October 17, when the burglars are believed to have broken into the home occupied by Ben Stokes’ wife and children while he was in Pakistan.
"The family were not harmed but the thieves got away with several items including jewellery and other valuables, many of which were sentimental. An investigation is ongoing and the family have released images of some of the stolen items in the hope it will aid investigators.
"If you have any information, call 101 quoting incident reference number 543 of October 17 or Crimestoppers, anonymously on 0800 555 111."
Stokes told his followers that many of the items taken are irreplaceable and have "real sentimental value for me and my family". However, he said that his motivation for sharing the items online was to help trace those responsible.
He added the worst thing for him was knowing that his wife and children were at home at the time of the incident, which "has had an impact on their emotional and mental state".
Stokes wrote: "On the evening of Thursday 17th October a number of masked people burgled my home in the Castle Eden area in the North East. They escaped with jewellery, other valuables and a good deal of personal items.
"Many of those items have real sentimental value for me and my family. They are irreplaceable. This is an appeal for any help in finding these people who carried out this act. By far the worst thing about this crime is that it was carried out whilst my wife and 2 young children were in the house.
"Thankfully, none of my family came to any physical harm. Understandably, however, the experience has had an impact on their emotional and mental state. All we can think about is how much worse this situation could have been.
"I am releasing photographs of some of the stolen items - which I hope may be easily identified - in the hope that we can find the people who are responsible for this. Although we have lost cherished possessions, to be clear, my sole motivation in sharing these photographs is not the recovery of material items."
"It is to catch the people who did this. Please come forward and contact Durham Constabulary on 101 quoting crime reference CRI00575927 if you think that you have any relevant information. Finally, I want to say thank you to the police service.
"Both now and whilst I was away in Pakistan, their support for my family has been outstanding. They continue to work incredibly hard in trying to find these people."
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