12:30pm Friday 27th August 2010
By James Connell
A WAR hero who lost three limbs in a bomb blast will be forced to use compensation cash to install CCTV cameras to protect his home from callous thieves.
Paratrooper Tom Neathway, aged 26, reported his black and red £6,000 Apache RLX 320 quad bike missing from his bungalow at 6am on Wednesday.
The theft from the garage in a village near Worcester would have happened between 1am and 6am.
Mr Neathway, formerly of Astwood Road, Worcester, had used his compensation money to buy the bike and was very attached to it because it helped him regain his independence and visit his friends after his injuries. It is of huge sentimental value to him.
Mr Neathway took the bike for a spin on Sunday, the day it was stolen and suspects he was targeted by thieves who had been watching his movements.
The former sniper said: “I’m really annoyed that someone has gone out and done this. If I saw the guys who did this I would like to smash them up.
“I can’t afford to get another bike. I am now going to have to put cameras on my house.
“It’s more money from my compensation that I need to protect my house and valuables that should not be spent on stuff like that. It should be spent on the rest of my life.
“They just popped the garage door. I think someone had targeted the house and carried out a recce.”
Mr Neathway said he hoped that coverage in your Worcester News would mean the person who stole the bike would not be able to sell it on and that he would be able to recover the vehicle.
The bike was not insured at the time it was stolen.
Mr Neathway, a lance corporal in 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment (2 PARA), lost both legs and his left arm following an explosion while serving in Afghanistan in July 2008.
The former Bishop Perowne High School and St Barnabas Primary School pupil mastered prosthetic limbs so that he was able to collect his campaign medal from Prince Charles in an emotional passing-out ceremony.
Det Insp Jim Fox, of South Worcestershire CID, said: “Someone out there – in addition to the callous thief – knows that the bike has been taken from a seriously injured war hero.
“We hope that this will encourage someone to provide the necessary information for us to recover the bike and bring the thief, or thieves, to justice.”
Anyone with information should call police on 0300 3333000, quoting 110S/250810 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
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