A brazen thief takes two boxes of beer from the shelves of a York shop.
And then, as the CCTV cameras capture every moment, he slowly forces his way through the locked sliding doors, causing nearly £1,000 worth of damage – and disappears into the night.
Today the frustrated business owner told YorkMix his business is “plagued” by thieves like him.
The incident happened at 4.50am on Sunday 5 May at the shop at the Inner Space Stations petrol station on Hull Road.
At that time of night, staff allow customers in through the locked doors at their discretion. They admitted the man as there was nothing suspicious about him.
He went to the alcohol fridge and stole a ten-pack of Fosters and a three pack of Desperados beer.
When he tried to get out by prising the doors open, the staff member told him she would open the doors to prevent damage – but he forced them anyway causing significant damage.
This was the last straw for Graham Kennedy, the owner of Inner Space Stations.
He said the garage has suffered at least 40 incidents of theft in the last six months. And it’s scary for the staff.
“We’ve been plagued by petty shop theft,” he told YorkMix. “It’s synonymous with what’s happening all over York.”
Shop theft was “really low down on the priorities” of police, he said. “And when they do catch people, the magistrates just let them off.”
Worst in 35 years
Thieving was the worst he had known it in the 35 years he has run the garage.
He went on: “It’s a problem throughout York. When you think of all the developments planned for Coney Street, who in their right mind would put a shop in the city centre?
“It’s so bad. The majority of people don’t don’t realise how bad it is.
“You’re getting thieves running amok. Boots is thinking of closing anyway, because they can’t keep pace with the theft.”
Graham said he has invested heavily to deter thieves, both with security patrols and the 35 CCTV cameras monitoring every angle of the premises.
“You basically can’t move in our site without having your face filmed – but they’re not even worried about covering up their face.
“They know they’re impervious – they know the chances of police lifting them are small and and once they’re arrested, they’re getting let off.
“We have had prolific thieves back time and time again. If they do get arrested, they’re out in three weeks.
“For me, we need a complete change of attitude in York – zero tolerance towards shoplifting. It would soon stop.”
Graham added: “I’ve not met a bad policeman, but they’re just swamped by this type of crime.”
He has written to David Skaith, the new Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, who now has responsibility for policing, to ask him to take action. He said the previous Police Commissioner was “completely and utterly useless”.
‘We treat this seriously’
A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “We received a report shortly before 5am on Sunday 5 May that a man had stolen beer from a service station on Hull Road, York.
“The suspect had taken bottles of lager worth about £20, and damaged a door as he made off.
“Police officers deployed to the location immediately, and searched the area, but the suspect was not found. We returned to the premises later in the morning to retrieve CCTV footage and continue our enquiries.
“The investigation is ongoing, and if you have information that could assist, such as dashcam footage, please contact North Yorkshire Police on 101, quoting reference 12240078471.
“We know offences against retailers can have a significant impact on people’s livelihoods, not to mention the impact on staff fearing crime and violence.
“That’s why we will always treat retail crime seriously, in particular when a crime is in progress, and there is the use or threat of violence, injury or damage.
“And we will pursue all reasonable lines of enquiry to help identify suspects, including obtaining CCTV footage and statements from eyewitnesses.”