A WAR veteran has been reunited with his medals more than two years after they were stolen in a burglary.

Colonel Alex Johnson of Rowlands Gill, Gateshead, was burgled on in February 2012, where his 12 World War Two medals and his MBE were stolen.

Despite extensive inquiries by police, they were never recovered.

Last month, while cutting some hedging at the rear of the nearby Tesco Metro at Rowlands Gill, workmen found the discarded medals.

PCs Chris Cooke and Michael Shimmin carried out enquiries and were able to reunite 93-year-old with his stolen property.

PC Cooke said: "Reuniting Colonel Johnson with his medals is one of the most heartwarming moments I've had in my time as a police officer and I'll never forget the look on his face when they were handed back to him.

"The medals are a treasured memory of his time at war and we'll be forever grateful to those workmen for ensuring they called police as soon as they found the medals."

The medals include a 1939-1945 Star, France and Germany Star, Victory medal, Dunkirk medal and D-Day medal.

They were still in reasonable condition aside from wear to the ribbons and Colonel Johnson paid more than £1,000 to have the ribbons replaced.

He was present at the Normandy Landings and was later captured by German officers but overpowered the guards while being transported in a truck.

He eventually managed to get back to the coast, saving other injured people along the way, by using an English crashed truck that they found as well as other transport - including bikes.

PC Cooke added: “He's a fascinating man with a great history and I was honoured to be able to hand his medals back to him."