Three medals, including an MBE, that were stolen from a house in Saltwood, near Hythe, 18 years ago have been recovered after they were spotted by a family member on an Internet auction site.

Former serviceman Graeme Olley received an MBE in 1958 after making major river in Borneo navigable on behalf of the Government, was awarded the General Service Medal for a tour of duty in Malaya between 1956 and 1959 and was recognised for services to his country with a Queen's Silver Jubilee Medal in 1977.

He gave up hope of seeing the medals after they were taken in from his home in May 1991.

His stepson was browsing ebay and spotted them on sale. The medals were then retrieved from a dealer in Norfolk who had put them on sale in good faith and they were returned to the family on Tuesday. A Kent Police spokesman told the Daily Mail: 'Certainly the dealer who had them was happy to hand them over to police when he realised their background.'

> Full story in Daily Mail: Old soldier's medals turn up on eBay 18 years after they were stolen