Sorrow over war hero’s lost medal

Villagers help 94-year-old find the treasure

A 94–year old Blanefield war hero has been left ‘extremely distressed’ after losing a prestigious war medal while attending the Remembrance Sunda y commemorations.

Police have issued an appeal in a bid to track down David Duguid’s the highly regarded Croix de la Legion d’Honneur medal after it was lost on Sunday.

Mr Duguid lost the honour after attending the service of remembrance at Strathblane War memorial around 11am.

The medal is the highest French order of merit for military and civil service and was established in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte.

Mr Duguid, of Netherblane, joined other ex–servicemen and women in remembrance of the war dead and to mark the centenary of the end of the First World War.

Mr Duguid earned the distinguished honour for his actions during the D– Day invasion of France on June 6 1944.

D–Day, also known as the Normandy Landings, saw 156,000 British, American and Canadian forces land on five beaches along a 50–mile stretch of the heavily fortified coast of France’s Normandy region.

It remains the largest seaborne invasion in military history.

Estimates suggest that more than 4,000 Allied troops lost their lives during the invasion, with thousands more wounded or missing.

It remains unclear which regiment Mr Duguid served with.

Now the distraught war veteran is desperate to track down the medal. It’s understood police officers have embarked on a recovery mission and have searched the area as well as Mr Duguid’s home.

Sergeant David McNally, of Balfron Police Station, said: “Efforts to trace the lost medal have so far been unsuccessful and the owner is extremely distressed by its loss. We would appeal to anyone who may have any information as to the location of this honour to contact us as soon as possible.”

Villagers have also given their support and taken to social media in a bid to track down the lost medal.

Iain Watson has scoured the surrounding streets. He said: “I’ve looked around the memorial and on the pavement on both sides down to Netherblane but no sign of them.”

Anyone who discovers the medal is asked to contact the police by calling 101 and asking for Balfron Police Station.