Police have apologised to a mum who lost her son in a drowning tragedy after 'mindless' thieves ransacked her car and stole life-saving kit.
Beckie Ramsey, from Chorley in Lancs, was visiting Manchester on Monday night to watch Dappy play at the O2 Ritz.
The tickets were a Christmas present for her 15-year-old daughter Annie.
READ MORE: Dad of drowned teenager makes emotional plea ahead of the 10th anniversary of his son's death
The pair stayed outside the venue after the show in the hope of meeting Dappy and didn't get back to their car in the NCP car park on Oxford Street until after midnight.
They immediately realised it had been broken into.
"As soon as we opened the door, my daughter said 'we've been robbed'," said Beckie.
"The car was just trashed."
The break-in caused extra upset for Beckie because she lost her 13-year-old son Dylan in a drowning accident in 2011.
It prompted her to launch the 'Doing It For Dylan' charity and she now campaigns on open water safety and visits schools to tell Dylan's story and carry out demonstrations.
A large amount of equipment and props was in the car and some had been stolen.
There was also a large picture of Dylan which fortunately was not taken, but had been damaged.
"My daughter was quite upset," said Beckie.
"Her first reaction was about the picture of her brother, she thought it had been stolen and didn't want to look in the boot in case it was missing.
"I was telling her 'it's a picture, we can get it replaced'.
"I'm thankful it wasn't taken."
The kit that has been taken includes; a dry suit, a bouncy aid, a life jacket, nine throw bags, a practice throw line target, a Manchester fire and rescue grey fleece, pop up banners, posters, a man's jacket, lots of 'Doing it for Dylan' posters and a box of 'Doing it for Dylan' wrist bands.
Beckie says the throw line, used to demonstrate how children can safely try and rescue someone from open water, is so large it would have required two people to carry it away.
"It's useless to anyone else but it's priceless to me, it's just mindless," she said.
Also among the missing items were precious letters from schoolchildren Beckie received after she had visited them.
"That's my inspiration before I go in," said Beckie.
"That's the the hardest thing I've lost.
"I've been doing this for ten years, it's ten years worth of stuff, it's my life and my memories of my son."
Greater Manchester Police has apologised after Beckie was told there would be "no further investigation" when she reported the incident.
She says a call handler recommended she ask NCP if they had CCTV footage of the incident herself.
"I was confused because I thought that was the police's job," Beckie added.
After being contacted by the Manchester Evening News, GMP have reopened the case.
Beckie hopes whoever took the props realises they are worthless and dumps them nearby.
She and Annie spent the earlier hours of Tuesday morning driving around Manchester city centre, looking down alleyways and in bins for the missing items without success.
And to top it off, her stay in the NCP car park cost £24.50 and she was so upset she got lost on the way home and the drive took an hour-and-a-half.
"I'm just grateful that me and my daughter didn't come back and catch people with hammers or whatever in the act," said Beckie.
"It could have been worse."
Since Beckie shared an appeal on social media she has been inundated with offers of help.
A JustGiving page set up by a Good Samaritan has already reached more than £1,000 in donations.
"I put it in a couple of Manchester Facebook groups and people were a bit embarrassed [for the city]," said Beckie.
"But like I've said to everybody, I know it wasn't personal, times are hard for people.
"I would like to say the response from people has been fantastic.
"Somebody donated £500 last night, I can't believe it.
"Somebody from the RNLI has been in touch to offer some de-commissioned equipment.
"Everybody has really pulled together and that is amazing."
What Greater Manchester Police say:
Chief Inspector Wignall, of GMP's City of Manchester district, said: "This is an extremely distressing incident for the victim who has had items of immense sentimental value stolen and damaged.
"Theft is an incredibly invasive crime and officers should always do their best to thoroughly investigate crimes of this nature, and bring those responsible to justice.
"However in this case, we have not done so and I would like sincerely apologise to the victim for the level of service she has received.
"I have personally reviewed and re-opened this crime and will be contacting the victim today."
