A FOUR-YEAR-OLD boy has been left heart-broken after thieves made off with a statue given to him by his great-grandfather.

Little Brandon McCarthy spotted the two feet high stone lion had been snatched during the night from outside the house where he lives in Bromley Cross.

The lion, named Simba, was left to him in a will after his great grandfather died two years ago and has become a close companion.

Now his family are offering a £200 reward for anybody who can help reunite Brandon, who will start at Walmsley Primary School in September, with his feline friend.

Dad Paul Brooks said: "The lion is pretty much worthless to anyone else but the value to Brandon is much greater than the real price.

"It would certainly have needed at least two people to move it because it is very heavy. If someone has done this for a joke, it is not very funny, and if they have taken it to sell then it is very sad that they have left a four-year-old boy upset.

"They need to realise just how much hurt they have caused him."

The lion is around two feet high and is light grey in colour.

It went missing last Saturday morning.

Neighbours reported seeing two youths acting suspiciously near to the house on Paper Mill Road at about 3am on the day it was taken.

Mr Brooks added: "Brandon would always walk past the lion and give it a pat on the head but he was devastated when he saw it wasn't there one day. We are very angry and we just want it back."

Anyone with any information can contact the family on: 07903 857313.