F1 star Jenson Button and his wife Jessica burgled at St Tropez holiday home

Formula One driver Jenson Button and his wife Jessica have been burgled on holiday and "most upsettingly" the thieves made off with her engagement ring.

It is feared the pair, who were with friends in a villa in St Tropez, may have been gassed by the burglars as they slept.

A spokesman for Button said: "Jenson, Jessica and friends were on holiday in a rented villa in St Tropez when on Monday evening two men broke into the property whilst they all slept and stole a number of items of jewellery including, most upsettingly, Jessica's engagement ring.

"The police have indicated that this has become a growing problem in the region with perpetrators going so far as to gas their proposed victims through the air conditioning units before breaking in.

"Whilst unharmed everyone involved is unsurprisingly shaken by the events."

St Tropez in the glamorous south of France has long been a popular destination for the rich and famous.