ONE of two men accused of stealing the gold medal won by Rhona Martin when she led the GB women’s team to victory at the 2002 Winter Olympics has admitted his part in the theft.

Charlie Walker, 25, pleaded guilty to breaking into Dumfries Museum and taking the medal along with other sporting mementoes as well as a chain of office and a casket containing an historical scroll.

The 22-carat medal had been loaned by the gold medallist, now Rhona Howie, for display in an exhibition tied to a curling event in the area.

A jury at Dumfries Sheriff Court was told the medal had not been recovered and the curling sportswoman describe it as “irreplaceable".

Walker changed his plea on the third day of the trial in which he and 34-year-old Stewart Pettigrew, who is now in the dock alone, were accused of committing the offence in April 2014.

Mr Pettigrew denies the charge.

On the first day of the trial, Mrs Howie gave evidence, saying: “In all my years of playing that was a special one.

"I was gutted when I heard it had been stolen and just went into tears.”

The jury of nine women and six men has heard how the activation of an alarm led to the discovery that a door and a shutter had been forced open.

Police found display cabinets smashed, with broken glass strewn on the floor.

CCTV film was shown which it was claimed identified the two men visiting the museum separately two days earlier.

The trial continues on Monday and Sheriff Brian Mohan has deferred sentence on Walker to the end of the case.