YOBS attacked a man’s peaceful getaway, breaking, stealing and setting fire to his things.


Peter Bristow owns a shepherds hut in a tranquil clearing surrounded by trees on the outskirts of Tetbury which he visits to relax most days.


On Tuesday, Peter, 71, was “heartbroken” to find hooligans had attacked the hut, putting a pitchfork through the door and ransacking the inside.


The vandals pocketed items from inside, some of which had deep intrinsic value, and then lit a fire – burning some of the things and leaving others strewn about the clearing.


They burnt Victorian chairs and gas canisters and splattered red paint over the front of the hut, which is worth around £12,000.


“When I turned up and found what had happened I was absolutely heartbroken,” said Peter, who is retired.


“The hut is on the edge of town, I’m surprised they even found it. Why they’d want to do something like that I don’t know.


“I can’t believe stole things but stayed and had a fire before they left."
He added police had been very helpful.


Neighbours heard some noise from the area but did not know it was vandals.


A police spokesman said: “A shepherds hut in Bath Road was broken into sometime between 9am on July 19 and 1.20pm on July 21.


“The offenders appear to have used items from within the shed to light a small fire causing damage to several items, including chairs, camping chairs, and a cooking stove.


“The offenders let off a fire extinguisher and stole a pair of binoculars, a telescope and several kitchen knives, costing several hundred pounds.


“Police are investigating.”
Peter is urging anyone who knows who attacked his hut, or saw anyone covered in red paint on the night, to get in touch with the police on 101, quoting incident number 196.