THIEVES have stolen an elderly man’s mobility scooter from a back yard.

The scooter, which belongs to an 85-year-old man suffering from a terminal cancer, was stolen from a rear yard in Spencer Street, in Consett.

The thieves also took the vehicles’ battery and even the victim’s walking sticks, which were stored with the scooter.

Police say the vehicle was taken at some point between 4pm on Wednesday, November 1 and 8am the following day.

His family have now paid £1500 for a replacement for the stolen scooter, which was only six months old.

The victim’s daughter said: “He can’t walk very far and the scooter was his only way of getting out and getting company.

“He used it every day to go up the shops and we encourage him to get out and about.

“The money doesn’t matter because he had to have something. They took the lot, they left him without even walking sticks”.

A spokesman for Durham Police said: “The gentleman relies on his scooter daily to get around due to his health conditions and any information to help get it returned would be appreciated”.

Anyone with information is asked to ring Consett Police on 101.