BRITISH COLUMBIA COMPUTER STOLEN Kelowna Daily CourierBy CHUCK POULSEN The Daily Courier

Jerry Kneller is hoping the computer thief has a heart

Kneller was a friend of Robert Appleyard, who died in hospital Monday of cancer

Robert's wife, Bridgett, stayed at the hospital during her husband's last days. Sometime on Tuesday or Wednesday, a thief broke into the Appleyard's Westside mobile home and stole their computer

The computer wasn't a huge loss, but before he died, Robert had downloaded all of his photos onto the system, including the complete family photo album

The computer and all of the pictures are gone. "They left the TV and stereo and just took the computer," said Kneller. "They were on a mission for a computer." He says it's likely the thief or thieves are unaware of the personal loss

"The computer has a CD burner," said Kneller. "They can keep the computer, but I was hoping that whoever took it will burn the pictures onto a CD and mail it to me. No questions asked." Kneller speculates that the thief may be someone from the trailer park who knew the residence was vacant

He said Bridgett knows of the computer theft (a Compaq laptop), but she isn't yet aware that the pictures were on the system

"I'll have to tell her, but I'm not looking forward to it," said Kneller. "She will be very upset." If the thief wants to do the right thing for a grieving widow, he can mail the CD to Kneller at #114 Terai Rd., Kelowna, V1X 7H3