Let's hope none of the Gurkhas were waiting for medals. I see on the world press this morning that a British Royal Marine stole medals from his colleagues at their barracks and sold them through his uncle on ebay.

It is hard to believe a British soldier could stoop so low as to steal the one thing any soldier holds dear, his medals. One would have thought a Royal Marine would have had some morals, clearly not.

The British Royal Marine Craig Firth was told by Judge Paul Darlow, "It is difficult to put into words how despicable his conduct was. The judge said what he did "lifts it beyond the normal breach of trust."

Craig stole the medals from fellow marines at Bickleigh Barracks, Plymouth, between 2005 and last year.

Both him and his uncle pleaded guilty to the theft of medals from fellow marines and the theft of another package of 31 medals belonging to the Ministry of Defence.   

It didn't stop there, they also admitted stealing a computer, digital camera and sat nav, as well as other items from the stores of 42 Commando Royal Marines.

The judge said the value of the medals was £25,000 to a collector. But he added: "It does not begin to reflect the value to those men who earned these medals. They are incapable of value."

He said Firth had "plundered" his colleagues' "treasured possessions."