A WOMAN who was devastated by the burglary of her home had a miscarriage shortly after the break-in.
Tracy Millward lost her baby the day after raiders made off with more than £46,000-worth of items from her home in Union Road, Oswaldtwistle, including two family heirlooms she is now desperate to get back.
The 22-year-old was between four and six weeks pregnant and was told by her GP the stress of the break-in was likely to have caused the miscarriage.
Tracy, who lives with her fiance Andrew Sage, also 22, said the burglary had also forced the couple to postpone their wedding, planned for 2004.
She said: "We have been trying for a baby for three or four months and I had guessed I was pregnant but it hadn't been confirmed. But everything that happened caused me to lose the baby - my doctor said the miscarriage was definitely down to stress. We came back from a weekend away and the place had been ransacked. I still can't bring myself to go upstairs because they went through all my stuff. We have lost everything and we are devastated."
Tracy is now appealing for two pieces of jewellery taken during the burglary, which happened on Sunday 22 June, to be returned to her.
They were a large oval amethyst brooch with gold edges that belonged to Tracy's great-great-great- grandmother and a 22-carat gold bracelet from Singapore with an oriental black enamel design her mother received for her 12th birthday.
Tracy said: "When we realised we had been burgled, the first thing I did was look for the jewellery. When I found it was missing I just broke down in tears. These are pieces I wanted to give to my own children and they mean so much to me. My mum is devastated as she passed them on to me and trusted me to look after them. I hope whoever took them has a little bit of dignity and gives them back. They can keep everything else but I would do anything to get the jewellery back."
The burglars also made off with other pieces of jewellery, 400 DVDs, 1,500 CDs and various electrical items. The couple have been collecting DVDs and CDs for several years.
Anyone with information should contact Accrington Police on 382141 or Crimestoppers free and in confidence on 0800 555 111.
