TWO boys aged 12 and 13 have been charged after two poppy wreaths at a war memorial was set on fire and destroyed.

The incident at the Wilton Park War Memorial earlier this month provoked outrage in Hawick,Roxburghshire.

Police Scotland have confirmed two boys aged 12 and 13  will be the subject of a report to the Children’s Reporterin connection with the vandalism.

Officers believe a third person was involved and have appealed for anyone with information to come forward.

Disgust at the destruction of the wreaths - left by the King’s Own Scottish Borderers’ Association and the town’s 111 Masonic Lodge in memory of the 130 local soldiers killed in the First World War’s Gallipoli campaign - prompted almost a dozen businesses in the town to club together to offer a £600 reward. caught.

Numerous notes and flowers were also left at the memorial by shocked townsfolk.

Inspector Carol Wood from Hawick Police Station said: “We recognise the distress and anger this incident caused the local community and the public can be reassured that this matter has been investigated robustly."

The officer said that although arrests had been made, she was still keen for information about the incident from members of the public.