Elderly couple ‘devastated and shaken’ after break-in

A pensioner couple have been left “devastated and badly shaken” after a break-in and robbery at their home in Crossdoney over the weekend, during which valuable items including a 1933 All-Ireland SFC medal were stolen.
Terry and Julie Coyle’s home was unattended for less than half an hour from 8pm on Saturday evening last as the couple, in their 70s, went out to vote in the General Election. On their return, they found the back door prised open and their house ransacked.
Along with the All-Ireland medal, a precious family heirloom won by Terry’s uncle and namesake, thieves stole two passports as well as valuable jewellery including 73-year-old Julie’s engagement and eternity rings.
They also pilfered a quantity of cash, a toolbox from the garden shed, gardening gloves and even cigarettes. The family have now offered what they say is a “substantial” cash reward after a shocking crime which, said their daughter Audrey, has left the popular couple badly shaken.
“The family are just devastated that this has happened. My parents are angry and so upset,” Audrey told The Anglo-Celt.
“They were obviously watching the house and waited until it was empty, even though the lights were left on. They went straight to the bedrooms and pulled out all of the drawers and took everything they thought was of value.”
While the Coyle family home is in a secluded location, there are a number of other houses in close proximity, one of which was also broken into on the same evening.
The items taken, among many, include a vintage gold charm bracelet with unique charms including a dachshund, a cow, a lamp with a pink stone inside and a chair with a coloured stone as the cushion, a solitaire engagement ring with the stone missing and a gold band eternity ring with small white stones cut to look like stars.
These pieces of jewellery, along with the All-Ireland medal, were “of particular sentimental value” according to Audrey, who says the family are desperate to see them returned.
“These things are irreplaceable and we just want to try to get them back, which is why we are offering a cash reward for their return.”
The family have notified local Cash for Gold traders and have been in contact with the GAA in Croke Park, who offered to contact memorabilia dealers in relation to the stolen medal.
“My Dad is angry but my mother is just really heartbroken that she has lost so many cherished items,” Audrey said.
“She has been in poor health having developed Sepsis last year and a rare type of blood cancer and this is obviously the last thing she needed.”
The family believe that the gang may have been watching the house for as long as one week after they noticed suspicious activity the previous weekend.
“It’s very unsettling to think that somebody broke in and did what they did in maybe as little as 20 minutes.”
Gardaí attended the scene on the night and again the next day in order to undertake a forensic examination.
Anyone with any information which could help further the investigation is asked to contact Cavan Garda Station.