A COUNCILLOR has hit out at "despicable" thieves who took money donated for a father's funeral.
Burglars stole the clearly labelled collection box from a house in Andover Road, Bestwood Estate, sometime between Saturday and Monday.
The box was full of money donated by people to help pay for the funeral of a Bestwood man.
Two computer game consoles were also taken during the break-in.
Bestwood councillor Michael Wildgust said: "It's despicable for anyone to do anything like that.
"These are obviously people that haven't got a lot of money to spare and they've gone round to ask for help and people have given their money to help give this man a dignified funeral.
"For someone to then take it, it's way out of order.
"I hope the person who has done this feels the full force of the law and pays for what they have done, because this is something the family will never forget."
Police have made inquiries in the area but are now appealing for the wider community to help.
Anyone who saw or heard anything suspicious over the weekend should report it to the police, no matter how insignificant they think it might be. The burglars forced their way in through a back door during the break-in, before fleeing with the items.
Sergeant Ian Johnson is leading the police investigation.
"This is, without doubt, a despicable act," he said. "The collection box was clearly marked up for its purpose to raise money to pay for this man's funeral.
"Not only have the man's daughters had to deal with the grief of losing their father they now have to deal with the fact that someone has intruded on his home and callously ruined their plans to give him a respectable send-off."
Any witnesses or anyone with any information should contact Notts Police on 101, quoting incident 486 of June 3, 2013.
People can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
