Leigh-Anne Pinnock has to buy back £40,000 engagement ring after it was stolen from her house

GUTTED Leigh-Anne Pinnock tracked down her stolen £40,000 engagement ring — and then bought it back.

The sparkler went missing from the Little Mix star’s bedroom while she was moving house.

BBC

Leigh-Anne Pinnock has bought back her stolen £40k ring[/caption]

Pals say Leigh-Anne was contacted by a pawn-broker who bought the emerald and diamond-encrusted ring unwittingly.

He realised the gold band be- longed to the DNA singer after The Sun revealed the theft and published pictures of the unique ring.

Leigh-Anne and football star fiancé Andre Gray, both 29, acted on the tip-off and identified the bespoke bling as theirs — before paying to take it away from the shop.

The pair were then told the ring — which has featured in a string of Leigh-Anne’s photoshoots — had changed hands SEVEN times before reaching the trader who sold it back to them.

Police are continuing to investigate the theft but have yet to identify suspects or make any arrests.

Refer to Caption

Leigh-Anne shows off the unique ring with fiancé Andre Gray[/caption]

Getty

The emerald ring has featured in a string of Leigh-Anne’s photoshoots[/caption]

A friend said: “It’s amazing really, but they actually managed to get the ring back.

“It had gone through seven different pawn shops before the final one realised what it was and called Andre.

“He went round and sure enough it was her ring, so he bought it back.

“It was never about the money for them, it was all about the sentimental value.

“The main thing is Leigh-Anne has her ring back. Nothing could replace that bit of her fairytale.”

The band was returned to Leigh-Anne on May 25 — the day after we revealed in a front page story, below, that it had been swiped.

The theft took place at the couple’s £4.5million mansion in Surrey last month while they were moving house.

Described as Leigh-Anne’s most treasured possession, the ring had been deliberately shut in the master bedroom, on top of a safe.

But after a removal team finished in other rooms, Leigh-Anne was unable to find the ring.

It is not clear if the thief was known to the couple or an opportunist intruder.

The crime shocked the pair so much they felt too vulnerable to leave any of their goods in storage and have since taken back all the items.

Pregnant Leigh-Anne and the Watford striker Andre are moving to a more family- friendly home closer to his training base.

A spokeswoman for Surrey Police said: “The ring has been returned to its owner. No suspects have been identified or arrested. Inquiries remain ongoing.”

Sources close to Leigh-Anne last night said they were “one hundred per cent certain” the ring was taken by an intruder.