TREASURED jewellery worth thousands of pounds has been stolen by cruel thieves who targeted an 80-year-old woman in Rossendale.

Police said the distraction burglary took place between 6.30pm and 7.30pm on Tuesday, November 8, at a house in Burnley Road, Loveclough.

A pensioner answered the door to a man who claimed that his car had broken down.

He had a black bucket and asked if he could come in the house to fill it with water. The lady let him in and he followed her into the kitchen.

She filled up the bucket for him and escorted him back out of the house out of the front door and then locked the door behind him.

Shortly after, the victim noticed that a large quantity of jewellery was missing from the rear upstairs bedroom and that the front door was unlocked and ajar.

The suspect is described as being slim, around 25, with a dark complexion, around 6ft tall and had a local accent.

Stolen property includes a teak wood jewellery box with glass inlet, with pink and red floral glass lid, a pink velvet square jewellery box, a thick 9ct gold rope 18in necklace, matching bracelet and matching drop pierced earrings, a 9ct gold half sovereign ring and a 9ct gold buckle effect ring containing three diamonds.

Also taken were a cameo gold ring, a 9ct fine gold necklace with inch long cross, a gold ring with two small diamonds and a ruby and two pairs of gold earrings.

Other silver rings and chains were also stolen along with numerous items of costume jewellery.

PC Melissa Kelly said: “It would appear that a second offender had sneaked into the address whilst the lady was in the kitchen because the door which had been locked after the first man left could only have been unlocked from the inside by a second person.

“This was an enormously distressing experience for this lady.”