LONDON: Ben Stokes, captain of England’s Test cricket team, stated on Wednesday that while he was in Pakistan for the most recent tour, a masked gang had broken into his family’s home.
The 33-year-old claimed that while his family did not suffer “any physical harm,” several “sentimental” items were taken from them.
The robbery occurred during the second Test, when Stokes was leading England in a match they ultimately lost by 152 runs to lose a 2-1 series. His wife Claire and children Layton and Libby were in the house at the time.
In a social media post, Stokes stated, “On the evening of Thursday, October 17 a number of masked people burgled my home in the Castle Eden area in the north east.”
They got away with a lot of jewelry, other valuables, and personal belongings. For me and my family, many of those items hold real sentimental value. They cannot be replaced.
“This is an appeal for any assistance in locating these individuals who committed this act.”
He continued: The fact that this crime occurred while my wife and two young children were present is by far the worst part of it. Fortunately, no one in my family was injured.
However, it is understandable that the experience has affected their mental and emotional state. We can’t stop thinking about how much worse this could have been.
“In the hope that we can locate the individuals responsible for this, I am releasing photographs of some of the stolen items, which I hope may be easily identified.
To be clear, my sole motivation for sharing these photographs is not the recovery of material possessions, even though we have lost treasured possessions.
“It is to locate the perpetrators.”
