Preston soldier's heartbreak after Afghan war medal stolen

Cade Alexander discovered at 10am yesterday that someone had broken into his Ford Fiesta and took his war medal, which he had earned for serving in Afghanistan, as well as some clothes, a monocle and a pair of colourblind glasses, after he parked it up outside a house in St George's Road at 2am the night before.

The 23-year-old, who joined the army in 2015 and works in the infantry, says the culprit then tried to sell the medal at Cash Converters and H&T Pawnbrokers in Friargate at around noon yesterday.

Cade said: "I was angry. It [the medal] symbolises six months of graft and hard work.

"I parked up at 2am and the car wasn't unlocked. To be quite honest, I didn't notice anything was wrong until I got in the car in the morning. The passenger door wasn't shut properly. I'm sure it wasn't like that before. They probably did that so I didn't hear the car door slamming.

"I called the police immediately afterwards."

Cade says he was tipped off by a retail worker that someone had tried to sell a modern war medal in their pawn shop around noon yesterday.

"I went into all the pawnbrokers in town and asked if someone had tried to sell a medal. Cash Converters said someone had tried 25 minutes ago. We then went to H & T 10 minutes later and they said someone had tried to sell it an hour ago. They said he was a 6ft, Asian male. Chances are he's realised that he can't sell it," he added.

The soldier had been working alongside paramedics in South Wales all throughout the Covid-19 pandemic and had returned to Preston for a three-week break when the incident occurred.

Police are now requesting CCTV footage in the area.

If you have any information, please contact them on 101 and quote 03 77 and July 23.