Reward offered over murder of Bertie Acheson

The Crimestoppers charity has offered a reward of up to £10,000 for information about the murder of Coleraine pensioner Bertie Acheson.

Mr Acheson, 72, was assaulted after he confronted an intruder in his Glenmore Gardens home on Monday.

The police said he suffered a heart attack brought on by stress. His wife, Sheila, 70, was also threatened.

Paul Leighton, Crimestoppers, said: "This was a cowardly act against two vulnerable people".

He said the community had been left "badly shaken and extremely angry."

"The person who committed this crime should not be allowed to get away with it and must be brought to justice, so I am appealing for anyone with information to contact Crimestoppers anonymously," he said.

"We don't want to know who you are, only what you know."

Detectives are treating Mr Acheson's death as murder.

On Wednesday, his daughter, Sandra Creelman, spoke of her family's heartbreak since the death.

She said the burglar had "ruined so many lives in the space of half an hour".

During the ordeal, the intruder threatened Mr Acheson's 70-year-old wife, Sheila, before escaping with £375.

Mrs Acheson suffers from mobility problems and her husband was her main carer. The couple had been together for 44 years.