A frail elderly woman has passed away from a broken heart after three men pretending to be police officers ransacked her home and stole her belongings.
Among the things that the thugs stole from UK-based Betty Munroe were her purse, jewelry, and her credit cards. The burglars also stole her most valued possession – the watch that belonged to Betty’s late husband.
Following the incident, Betty’s health spiraled out of control and she got diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. She had also been experiencing troubles sleeping, shaking out of fear, and repeated nightmares.
After several visits to the hospital, the senior woman was also diagnosed with Takotsubo Syndrome, also known as the broken heart syndrome, that served as the main reason for her death.
As per the British Heart Foundation, the Takotsubo Syndrome causes the heart to fail to pump the blood to the rest of the body sufficiently because “the left ventricle, one of the heart’s chambers, gets larger and changes shape.”
In a family statement, Betty’s relatives accused the burglars of taking away the woman’s will to live.
“The distressing circumstances of our lovely mum’s death have caused us so much sorrow. Before the burglary she was happy and living independently in her home of 56 years,” they wrote.
“The violent actions of these callous individuals robbed her not only of precious possessions, but of her sense of security and peace and the will to go on. All the generations of our family who owe her so much are bereft at her death.”
While the police are investigating the case, Detective Inspector Simon Barnes urged the public to help them find the ruthless thieves so that they can be brought to justice.
“This is one of the saddest cases I have come across during my career and a stark reminder of how deeply a burglary can affect a victim,” he said.
“Betty was in good health before this incident but she deteriorated very quickly after it and sadly died in her care home this week, surrounded by her family.
“I would like to take this opportunity to appeal to anyone who has any information about the burglary in June to please contact us, no matter how insignificant you think your information might be.”
What are your thoughts on this case? Let us know in the comments and don’t forget to SHARE this post with your family and friends and follow us on Facebook for more news and stories!
[rumble video_id=v3e366 domain_id=u7nb2]