Appeal for information following the death of Bertie Acheson

I was appalled and deeply saddened by the death of 72 year old Bertie Acheson in Coleraine on Monday past.

Mr Acheson was at home with his wife in the early hours of Monday morning when a person broke into their home and assaulted Mr Acheson, before threatening his wife, Sheila. I cannot even begin to imagine the sense of loss which Sheila must be feeling at this time. My thoughts and prayers are very much with her and the family at this very difficult and traumatic time. Mr Acheson has been described as a good man, living quietly and caring for his wife of 44 years. He lost his life for the sake of £375.

The local community are shocked and understandably upset and angry at what has happened to Mr Acheson and his wife. I know that they will want to help the police in whatever way possible to catch the person responsible. Every shred of information is important no matter how insignificant it might appear and I would appeal to anyone who thinks that they have information which might help the investigation team to make this available as quickly as possible. Better to have a piece of information and rule it out than perhaps be missing that critical link.

We must catch the person who did this and we will do everything within our power to do so – we owe it to Mr Acheson and his wife Sheila.

I can understand why other older people may now be feeling vulnerable in their homes. It will be no consolation to the Acheson family whatsoever to know that crimes of this type are extremely rare. But if you are concerned and would like some advice or reassurance please contact your local police and we will be very happy to assist and advise you. There is also some information on the Crime Prevention pages of our website at www.psni.police.uk/crime-prevention.htm

But if you think that you can help us to catch the person responsible for Mr Atcheson’s death you can call the special incident room at Coleraine on 028 7028 0987 or alternatively Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.