Troops' parcels thrown in the street - Harryville mum's car is vandalised

THE Ballymena mother of a soldier serving in Afghanistan has been left devastated after gift boxes destined for troops were stolen from her car on Monday night and the contents scattered along a street.

Heather Davidson, whose son Alistair is on patrol in the war-torn country with the 1st Battalion of the Royal Irish Regiment, said the boxes had been intended to bring "a little of home comfort" to the soldiers.

The packages — which contained sweets, toiletries, magazines and more — had been carefully collected and packed by a group of volunteers led by Ms Davidson.

"I can't believe that someone would want to do this," said the mother from Harryville. "They pulled the door panel off the car and took out all the boxes which were ready to be posted out to Afghanistan.

"All the boxes were ripped open and the gifts were strewn over the street. Everything was totally destroyed as the items were left lying in the rain."

Ms Davidson added: "It has caused me and everyone involved with the collection a lot of distress. It is very upsetting."

People from churches and youth groups in Ballymena and as far as Coleraine and Castlerock have been donating gifts for the parcels since last March. Thousands of pounds worth of items have already been received and posted out to troops.

Ms Davidson said she is determined to carry on with her work, despite the set-back.

It is understood that police have apprehended a youth in connection with the break-in.

Rodney Quigley from the Harryville Partnership Initiative said: "It is just hard to understand why anyone would do this and it is an action which is condemned by everyone here.

"This woman has been doing a fantastic job and she has received great support here in Harryville and we are all simply disgusted by this attack."