Woman tells of terror at grave

Instead, a masked thug threatened her with a cosh and stole her handbag containing precious letters penned by her late mother Cynthia Parden-Bell.

Now, Mrs Clayton, who suffers from debilitating fibromyalgia, has returned to Heaton Cemetery to appeal for help to catch the cowardly attacker before he strikes again.

Mother-of-three Mrs Clayton, aged 54, lives in Warrington but grew up in Johnson Fold and regularly visits the grave of her mother, who died four years ago aged 70 from ovarian cancer.

She was tidying the grave and laying flowers when a man wearing a ski mask pulled up and smashed the window of her Mondeo to steal her handbag on Friday lunchtime.

"I heard a smash and looked up to see this man taking my bag. I ran over and he shook the cosh at me as if he would hit me, I keep having nightmares about it," she said.

"I love Bolton and everyone is so friendly so I can't believe this would happen, where can you feel safe if not in a cemetery? It should be sacred.

"I'm most upset about the letters as they had my mother's handwriting on them any I would dearly like them back."

Mrs Parden-Bell was a major in the military police in India before moving to Bolton with husband Ronald.

Her husband now lives in Astley with his son Michael and Mrs Clayton's sister Catherine and brother Tom both still live in Bolton.

Just three weeks ago Jean Fitton, aged 72, from Halliwell, was attacked as she visited her grand-daughter's grave at the same cemetery off Overdale Drive.

Mrs Clayton said: "The cemetery was very quiet and I would advise people not to go on their own, I will not go back without my husband."

The attacker is described as white, aged between 20 and 25, about 5ft 11in, slim, wearing a brown woolly hat and a blue sweatshirt. He escaped in a turquoise coloured car driven by a white woman aged in her early 20s with long brown hair tied back.

The number to ring is Astley Bridge CID on 0161 856 5740.