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Source: ONE News -
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The New Zealand Army has revealed more medals have disappeared from its national museum in Waiouru.
The latest medals loss follows the theft of rifles and other items by a former curator last year, and the haul of Victoria Crosses and other medals stolen in a smash and grab three years ago.
However, unlike the national search after the thefts, the army is refusing to ask the public for help.
The missing World War I medals include a set given to the museum by a United States donor in 1984 and another set given in 1979, The Dominion Post reports.
They were discovered missing in the wake of the prosecution of a curator who had stolen antique weapons. When a full inventory of the museum's 500,000 items was carried out, the two medals could not be found.
The families of the donated medals are upset they have gone missing, says Major Kristian Dunne of the NZ Army.
The medals had been lost, stolen, or replaced adds Dunne, saying that they had been missing for some time.
However, the army is keeping details of the suspected thefts under wraps, refusing to say what medals have been stolen, or publicly appealing for information, despite doing so successfully in 2007.
"We're not divulging the information on the medals because we're still working with the families, and it's a matter between ourselves and the families," Dunne says.
It is a questionable stance, according to the former Chief of Army Lou Gardiner, who dealt with the theft of the Victoria Crosses and now heads the Crimestoppers hotline.
"I certainly think it could help the emotional side for the family... I think the public would identify with that," Gardiner says.
The army admits that they do not expect to see the medals ever again, and that time is now best spent working on getting replacements made for the families.
