‘Devastated’ victim of theft in heartfelt plea

Laura Tee, 22, of Deerswood Close, Worthing, has carried the order of service from her dad Duncan’s funeral with her at all times since he died nearly four years ago.

But during a night out at Retro Bar, in Chatsworth Road, Worthing, on April 30, she put the coat down for a matter of minutes, to find it gone when she returned.

As well as the book, the coat contained Laura’s house keys and wallet, but she says she only really cares about getting the funeral book back.

Laura said: “I always carry the funeral book with me so that my dad is close to me.

“It had a picture, and some nice words.

“I could get in contact with the funeral director, but I don’t think they would keep them from nearly four years ago.”

The theft has been reported to the police, but the culprit has yet to be found.

Laura said: “I left it for two seconds while I went to the bathroom, and when I came back, it was gone.

“It’s disgusting, really. If you want money, you should go out and earn it, not steal. It was the end of the night, so there was hardly any money in there, anyway.”

Laura believes there would have been at least one witness to the theft, as there was only a handful of people in the bar at the time – around 15 minutes before closing.

She said: “There was only about 10 people in there at the time.

“I think the police are waiting on CCTV from the bar.

“I had to change the locks on the house and cancel my cards, but I don’t care about that and just want the book back.”

The coat is a plain black, from Officer’s Club, while the wallet is also black, and made by Quicksilver.

Laura said: “I am devastated that someone else has my things.

“If anyone knows or saw anything on the night, please come forward and tell the police.

“And if you have it, please hand it into the police station.”

Any information relating to the theft should be passed on to Sussex Police, by calling 101.