A flood hero's war medal which was donated to the fire service, was believed to have been stolen, a police spokesman has said.

A flood hero's war medal which was donated to the fire service, was believed to have been stolen, a police spokesman has said.

The George Medal for bravery which was awarded to fireman Fred Sadd, was donated to the fire service in 1989, by his son Brian, a year after his father's death.

However, in September, the Mercury reported that the medal had been put up for sale by a private collector at a Suffolk auction house.

The medal was seized and the sale was halted, and an investigation was carried out into how the medals ended up in the hands of a third party.

A spokesman from Norfolk Constabulary said: 'It appears as though the medal was stolen from the fire service.

'It then looks like it has been sold on a number of times before it reached the person who put the medal up for auction in September.

'There have been no leads so the police investigation has stopped, though if anyone has information we are willing to hear.'

Roy Harold, Chief Fire Officer at Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service said: 'With the police now confirming that their investigation is complete and that, having traced the medal's recent history, there are no further leads to follow and no reasonable prospect of further legal action to take, we are now making arrangements to get it back to Mr Sadd and his family, where it properly belongs, as soon as possible.

'To do this, we have reimbursed the current holder's costs and are grateful to him for helping us to resolve this matter amicably.

'We have been liaising closely with Mr Sadd and have suggested some possible options for where the medal could be looked after in the future. This includes the possibility of lending it to our colleagues at the Time and Tide museum in Great Yarmouth, where it could go on display and add further testimony to the town's maritime and coastal history, and the remarkable people who, like Fred Sadd, have so bravely contributed to it over the years.

'However, we will of course entirely respect and support the wishes of Fred's family – and the final choice of what to do next with his George Medal rightly and properly rests with his loved ones.'

Mr Sadd received the George Medal for his bravery on the night of January 31, when he rescued more than 20 people during the 1953 floods.

Anyone with information about the medals going missing from the fire service should contact Norfolk Police on 101.