A Lampeter PCSO who was once nominated for a Dyfed-Powys Police award is believed to have been arrested on suspicion of fraud and theft.

Dad-of-three Ryan Jones, 31, who has served in Lampeter since 2007, is thought to have been suspended from police duties while the investigation is ongoing.

The Cambrian News understands that the inquiry centres around claims that a substantial amount of cash – said by one source to be in the region of £16,000 – has been stolen from Lampeter Round Table of which Mr Jones was treasurer until recently.

A familiar figure in Lampeter, in March 2017 Mr Jones was put forward for the #WeCare Awards by the mother of a bullied schoolgirl who said in her nomination that the PCSO went ‘above and beyond’ to help during a very difficult time.

Two months later he raised more than £5,000 for the Ty Hafan children’s hospice in Sully by hiking along the Great Wall of China.

Local county councillor Hag Harris described the matter as a ‘severe blow’ to the people of Lampeter.

“As an ex-Round Tabler who worked for many years alongside my colleagues this has come as a massive shock,” he told the Cambrian News.

See this week’s South Ceredigion paper for the full story, available in shops and as a digital edition now