Thugs smash through charity shop in post office raid

SMASHED . . . a hole in the wall to gain entry to the post office next door

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HEARTLESS thieves demolished the roof of a charity shop before dismantling a wall to gain access to a post office.

Three raiders bulldozed through the ceiling of Dr Kershaw's charity shop, in Chadderton precinct, before knocking through a wall on the shop floor to reach the neighbouring post office in the early hours of yesterday.

They had cut through barbed wire to get on to the roof and knocked through the ceiling of a store room which was used to house bags of donated clothes. Once in the building, at around 2.05am, they ventured onto the shop floor after ripping open several lockers upstairs. Alarms had initially gone off but the bandits tore the security devices apart and although the shop inside was being decimated, from the outside it looked secure.

Armed with crow bars, the three robbers, who were said to be wearing black hoodies, began to attack the wall of the adjoining post office. However, after realising the crow bars made slow progress, they disappeared and returned with a sledge hammer.

After they knocked through the wall, leaving rubble strewn across the floor, they raided cash and cigarettes from the staff counter area of the post office. It is unclear how much they took at this time although it is understood to be a considerable amount.

They then exited through the entrance they had made and left via the back door of the charity shop at around 3.35am.

The break-in was discovered when staff opened up the shop in the morning. Greater Manchester Police, who were called at 8.15am, said they were investigating and a team of forensics were examining the scene.

Lisa Pearson, Dr Kershaw's income generation manager, who saw roller shutters put in place after the shop was broken into in October, 2016, described the break in as heart breaking.

She said it is likely the shop will remain closed for a week as they carry out repair works and clean the stock.

She said: "It is just shocking the amount that it costs us every time this happens.

"We are losing income and that is income for the families. The people who do this don't think, it is absolutely heartbreaking.

"All this stock is going to have to be washed. Everything is going to have to be cleaned.

"I could actually cry, we are right at the year end and every single penny counts."

Alison Taylor, Dr Kershaw's shop area manager, added: "It is the damage that they have caused and the cost of repairing that damage. It is loss of custom and loss of donations because we have to keep the shutters down and send people somewhere else.

"It is just so upsetting, we work so hard on presenting the shop and it is demolished by mindless thugs."

Mr Parekh, owner of the post office, said: "I certainly didn't think I would be getting a phone call this morning that we had been broken into, you just couldn't have written it. I just couldn't believe it, I said 'no it's not possible'."