MEMBERS of Quarry Bank community have been left outraged over the sentence of a criminal who sold their treasured brass plaques off a war memorial.

Mark Mellor from Furlong Court, Colley Gate, pocketed £190 for six plaques from the War Memorial in Stevens Park.

The plaques, which bore the names of soldiers who lost their lives fighting for their country, were taken in January.

Mellor admitted selling them at a scrapyard in Attwood Street, Lye, and was jailed for 18 months by Judge John Warner at Wolverhampton Crown Court last Wednesday (October 1).

But the leniency of the sentence has outraged members of the community.

Ward Councillor and Chairman of Friends of the Stevens Park, David Sparks, who is also a member of Quarry Bank Royal British Legion, was left disgusted.

He said: “I would hope that when this person dies he meets the people who died for him and they bestow their memory on him.

“The real punishment would be for this individual to experience war like those in Quarry Bank who laid their lives down for us.

“No punishment will be sufficient for the people of Quarry Bank and the disgusting contempt this community has for this individual.”

Quarry Bank cllr Bryan Cotterill, added: “This is an emotional thing and it is a sensitive issue and it was a thoughtless crime, which upset a lot of people.

“The punishment does not fit the crime and this is sending out completely the wrong message.”

The plaques have now been replaced in Stevens Park and the Friends of the Park are planning to hold a service of dedication in memory of the fallen men and women listed on the plaques.