A LLANELLY Hill pensioner is appealing for help to track down heartless thugs who he claims shot one of his ducks on a pond near to his home.

Roy Alexander, 72, had just finished feeding the ducks at around 10.30am on Sunday before popping to a friend’s house for a cup of tea.

A neighbour called shortly after saying a group of youths in a white Astra van had been seen next to the pond and one of them was carrying a rifle.

Roy rushed back to the pond to discover one of the ducks had been shot through the head with a pellet.

‘I was absolutely heartbroken, really shook up’, said Roy. ‘Who would do such a thing, what could they possibly get out of such cruelty?’

The youths had gone but left wrappings from McDonalds on the ground containing food that was still warm. The wrappers stated the food had been bought at 10:51am, Order number 88 at Till 17.

‘It must have been a McDonalds very close by in that case,’ pointed out Roy, adding, ‘Ebbw Vale or Abergavenny are the closest.’

Roy presented all of this information to the police but heard no more. Roy contacted Abergavenny Police two days later and was told the case had been transferred to Brynmawr.

The Chronicle contacted Gwent Police for an update but had received no additional information at the time of going to press.