The medals of an Australian WWII soldier, stolen from a Queensland family before Christmas, were returned after a public appeal.
The medals of an Australian WWII war hero, allegedly stolen from a Queensland family a week before Christmas, have been returned after a statewide public appeal. Australian soldier Clarence “Charlie” James Jones died in a Malaysian prisoner-of-war camp at 34, and was awarded the medals posthumously. The priceless heirlooms were passed through his family until they were in the possession of his grandson, Robert MacCallum.
However, only one week before Christmas, thieves broke into his home and allegedly took them, leaving MacCallum sure he would never see his grandfathers medals again. “I found out someone had broken into my home when I was renovating it,” he told 7NEWS. “When I realised, I was devastated.” In another part of town, police were searching a home of a man in Strathpine, north of Brisbane, in relation to another matter when they found the stolen medals belonging to a C.J Jones. Unable to find the owners, a public appeal was launched. “Anyone who believes these medals belong to them, or to someone they know, should contact police,” they said at the time. The appeal for information left officers inundated with reports, and they were eventually able to get in touch with the relatives of the mystery solider. “We thought we lost them forever,” MacCallum’s cousin Kathy Giezen said. “Without social media, we wouldn’t have got them back.” Giezen said she was first contacted on by a woman from the Geraldton Historical Society who had seen the plight from Queensland police. She was able to track down the mystery soldiers family using Ancestory.com. “The support (from the community) was outstanding and amazing,” Giezen said. “We actually found out Clarence is eligible for another medal, which we’ve applied for. “We’ll have them mounted on a shield, and that can be kept in a very safe spo
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