A young couple are furious after their wedding invitations were ruined by vandals who pushed excrement into a postbox.

Mail - Kate Eshmade and Martin Kershaw post their new invitations Picture: STEVE O'CONNELL

Martin Kershaw, 27, posted 40 invites for his September wedding to Kate Eshmade at his local postbox outside the sorting office in Spa Road, Hockley.

When friends and relatives told him none had turned up a week later, he phoned the sorting office to ask what the problem was.

He said: "They told me they were clearing a backlog and would turn up soon, so I left it another week and, when they still hadn't turned up, I phoned again.

"This time the man told me someone had been posting excrement through this letterbox and there was a good chance our letters had been spoiled and sent to Southend for cleaning before being sent on."

The vandalism is set to cost Mr Kershaw £100. He said: "I don't want wedding invites turning up on people's doorsteps with brown stains and smelling, so I'm going to have to do the whole lot again."

A spokesman for Royal Mail said: "Police have been called in after someone posted excrement. Some items of mail were contaminated and were being cleaned before being forwarded on."

Published Monday May 24, 2004

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