CALLOUS crooks grabbed bags full of Christmas presents from the home of a Clacton family of 12.

Dad-of-ten John Palmer arrived home at his Hastings Avenue house after forgetting his wallet.

He found his patio door had been smashed open by burglars, who had escaped with a haul of jewellery and electrical gear, as well as bags full of Christmas presents.

Mr Palmer said: “I came home at about noon because I had left my wallet in a different jacket.

“As I walked towards the house I saw the curtains were ruffled but just thought someone might have left a window open by mistake.

“But when I got to the back of the house I saw the patio door was open. At first I thought my missus might have left it open.

“I walked inside and it was a big mess where they had turned it over.

“All the drawers had been pulled out and they had been through all of the wardrobes and things searching for bits to steal.

“We don’t even know everything that’s missing.”

Among the items stolen were two Sony Vaio laptops, two JVC 6-inch TVs for cars and a Raymond Weil watch.

Mr Palmer said: “More than anything it feels awful someone having been in your house, looking through your things. It is horrible.

“My missus hasn’t stopped crying. We are both upset. We haven’t told the children because we don’t want them to worry.

“I’d like to get my hands on the people who did this.”

But the toughest blow for the family to take was the theft of bags full of wrapped Christmas presents for John’s children.

The bags were full of gifts for the youngsters, including their main presents and a host of stocking fillers.

Mr Palmer pledged they will make sure their sons and daughters, aged between three and 34, will enjoy Christmas as normal.

He added: “It’s devastating, but at the end of the day you have got to pick yourself up and carry on.

“It’s the worst time in the world for something like this to happen with Christmas coming up. You never think it will happen to you.

“But we are determined not to let it spoil Christmas for us and for the children.

“We will sort something out to make sure they don’t miss out and we will try to carry on as normal.”

The incident happened before noon last Friday*29*.

Det Con Mo Crawley said: “Two silver Ford Fiestas were seen parked near the burgled property.

“The occupants spoke together and police would like to speak with these occupants to eliminate them from the inquiry.”

Anyone with information should contact Det Con Crawley on 101.