Wooden 'Tommy' statues depicting soldiers have been stolen from a Remembrance memorial on a roundabout in Leigh, Wigan, prompting outrage and a police investigation. The theft was discovered on Friday morning, just 48 hours after Armistice Day, which marks the end of the First World War in 1918.
Theft from Atherleigh Way memorial
The statues were installed on the roundabout on Atherleigh Way, near Leigh Sports Village, by the Reeva Programme community interest company, a social enterprise supporting military veterans and emergency services leavers. The figures were handmade by members of the organisation's Woodland Makers group.
Founder and director George Brooks said there were seven large Tommies and seven smaller ones, designed as 'honour guards' for the dozens of poppies and wooden crosses placed on the roundabout for Remembrance. One large Tommy and four of the smaller statues were taken.
Appeal for safe return
Mr Brooks branded whoever took the Tommies as 'horrible, disgusting and dishonourable' and issued an appeal for their safe return. "It is not just wood, it is what the wood represents," he told the Manchester Evening News.
"The Tommies represent lost loved ones. Lost friends. Lost brothers and sisters in arms. Lost family members. They represent the lives given, the sacrifices made and the people who should never be forgotten."
Mr Brooks appealed for the statues to be returned to the roundabout memorial. He said Greater Manchester Police has been alerted and officers said they would be checking CCTV cameras overlooking the location. GMP has been approached for comment.
