A WIDOW who had her most cherished possessions stolen during a burglary has warned householders to learn from her misfortune.

The 63-year-old nurse, who did not want to be named, returned home at 9.30pm on Wednesday, January 27, to find her bungalow in Stonehouse ransacked by thieves.

Burglars gained entry to her property in Ryelands Road via a neighbour’s garden and broke the glass in the French doors of her conservatory.

After searching through the mess they left in their wake, she was devastated to find that all her most cherished family heirlooms had been taken, including her late-husband’s engagement ring.

“I could sense immediately that something was wrong when I got home,” said the woman, who lives alone and works part-time as a nurse.

“All the lights were on and all the doors in the house were open. They had ransacked my drawers and wardrobes and threw all my clothes on the floor.

“They took my leather jewellery box. It was full of items which had been given to me by my late husband and my daughters.”

Among the things kept in the box were all the earrings and bracelets her husband of 38 years had bought her throughout their marriage, including an eternity ring purchased for their anniversary.

Also stolen was a unique 18 carat gold bangle which her great grandmother had passed down through the generations.

But worse of all was her £3,000 gold engagement ring which had once belonged to her grandmother.

“It was heart-breaking at the time. I was so angry and shocked this could have happened,” she said.

“All in all they must have taken around £6,000 worth of my most cherished possessions.

“Luckily I was insured but as you can imagine no amount of money will ever be able to replace them.

“The worst thing was the feeling that these people had been through my most personal things. It’s a horrible feeling of invasion.”

She issued a message of caution to other householders to be more vigilant about protecting their houses.

“Just be aware these kind of unscrupulous people are out there and they are looking for opportunities,” she said.

“So be vigilant and always leave a light on when you leave the house, especially at night, even if it’s just for a few hours.

“Do not leave cash in your home, and put precious items out of view and in a safe place and always double check locks on windows and doors.

“I know just how devastating this can be so I don’t want this to happen to anyone else.”

Police are currently investigating the burglary.

Inspector Andy Poole of Stroud police said: “We have carried out forensic investigations, completed house to house inquiries and checked CCTV footage but no arrests have yet been made.”

“But no arrests have yet been made.

“We would urge anyone with information to contact police on 101 quoting incident number 446 of January 27.”