War medal to be returned to soldier’s family in Thetford
Merseyside police and specialist heir hunters Finders International joined forces to locate the surviving family of decorated WWI soldier, Corporal Francis Mitchell, from Yorkshire, and reunite them with his Victory Medal after it was found in Liverpool on June 6 2014. Pictured is Daniel Curran (founder of Finders International) holding a photo of Corporal Francis Mitchell and the medal. Photo: Gavin Trafford. - Credit: Gavin Trafford
The medal of a decorated First World War hero is being returned to his surviving family following a quest that started in Liverpool and finished in Norfolk.
Merseyside police and specialist heir hunters Finders International joined forces to locate the surviving family of decorated WWI soldier, Corporal Francis Mitchell, from Yorkshire, and reunite them with his Victory Medal after it was found in Liverpool on June 6 2014. Pictured is Daniel Curran (founder of Finders International) holding a photo of Corporal Francis Mitchell and the medal. Photo: Gavin Trafford. - Credit: Gavin Trafford
Francis Mitchell, of West Yorkshire, served as a Corporal with the Lancashire Fusiliers during the war and was among the soldiers to receive the Victory Medal.
Nearly a century after the war, his medal was discovered near to the Maritime Museum at the Albert Dock, in Liverpool, on June 6 2014, and it was handed into the police by a member of the public.
It was thought it could have been dropped by somebody attending events that same day to mark the 70th anniversary of the D-Day Landings during the Second World War, and the quest then began reunite the medal with Mr Mitchell's family.
Merseyside Police and specialist heir hunters Finders International joined forces, and their detective work led them to Mr Mitchell's granddaughter Freda Powell, who lives in Thetford, and who said the family was 'thrilled' to have the medal returned.
Corporal Francis Mitchell. Photo: supplied by Freda Powell. - Credit: Supplied by Freda Powell
'I received a surprise phone call about the medal on Remembrance weekend, which of course was very fitting,' she said.
'I remember my grandfather as I was 10 when he died.
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'He was quite a frail man because of the injuries he had sustained during the war.
'Coincidentally, my sister had also been researching our family tree at that time and we're all thrilled that this important piece of our history has been returned to us.
'We are very grateful to Merseyside Police and Finders International for all their efforts in achieving this for us.'
Merseyside Police's records and property manager, Kate McNichol, said: 'When we first found the medal we thought it would be a long shot as there was very little to go on, but we knew if we could trace Mr Mitchell's family they would love to have such a precious item in their possession.
'We are so pleased that a chance find in Liverpool has led to such joy for a family 200 miles away.'
