A house in Auchinleck was 'deliberately vandalised' last night in an incident which left residents shaken after their property was wrongly targeted by thugs.

The incident occurred on Thursday, April 1 when at around 10.10pm police were called to an address in Beechwood Avenue after a number of windows of the house were vandalised.

The householders, a man and woman who were home at the time, were not injured but officers say they have been left in "a great deal of distress" following the ordeal which cops believe may have been triggered by misinformation spread on social media.

Inspector Julie McLeish, local area Inspector, said: "Officers have been carrying out enquiries in the area and checking CCTV. Thankfully no one from the house was injured but this was a very frightening experience for them.

"At the moment, we don't know why the house was targeted, however, one line of enquiry is that it was because of misinformation about one of the occupants of the address circulating on social media sites in the East Ayrshire area.

"This totally incorrect information has caused a great deal of distress to the residents at the address, who are totally unconnected to any claims in the post.

"We would urge people to be responsible with any information they share on social media."

If you have any information in relation to the vandalism, please contact officers at Cumnock Police Station via 101 quoting reference number 4070 of Thursday, April 1, 2021. Alternatively, details can be passed anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.