A FAMILY are asking thieves to stop removing solar powered lights from the grave of a much loved mother-of-three.

It is almost two years since Louise Brown lost her battle with cervical cancer, leaving her friends and family bereft.

She was laid to rest in East Stanley Cemetery, County Durham, and her relatives visit regularly to maintain her grave as they continue to grieve.

But over the past month, four of the solar lights have been stolen, which is only adding to the family’s distress.

Now they are urging people to leave Louise’s grave alone to let her rest in peace.

Her mother, Jeanie Shield, 54, who lives in Stanley, said: “It is heart-breaking.

“We go up and we wonder where these items are going.

“I cannot understand why someone would do this, to remove something from her grave.

“It is really hard to put into words how we feel as a family.”

Mrs Shield, who works as a cleaner in a dental surgery, is now looking after Louise’s children, Kieran, 17, Caitlin, 12, and 10-year-old Ellie.

She said: “We are up quite often and every time there is another one that has gone missing. I do not understand it.

“We just want the best for her.

“Everyone else has them up there and we want it to look perfect, especially for her children.

“I have just started to take them to their mammy’s grave and I want it to look right for them.”

The family is still coming to terms with Louise’s death in December 2014, including her brothers, Shaun, 30, and 25-year-old Curtis.

Curtis said: “When the first light went missing we did not think too much of it, so we replaced the full set.

“But then one has gone missing each week for the following three weeks consecutively.

“Someone is taking them maliciously.

“We cannot figure out why someone would steal off someone’s grave. It is shocking. It is really upsetting and we want whoever it is to know the impact it is having on her family.

“It is tough enough as it is, but it is even harder with things going missing off her grave.

“She should not even be there in the first place, and taking things from her grave is just making it worse.”