A family tearoom in Cardiff has been burgled for the third time in what appears to be an targeted pattern of similar incidents.
'There have been tears, there will be no sleep, it will cost us money, time and energy'
Pettigrew Tea Rooms, which is located at the main entrance to the city’s Bute Park, has been targeted by thieves around the same time in November for the past three years.
'This time we thought we were in the clear'
Each time the thieves have overcome bars, locks, shutters, cameras and monitored police alarm systems.
They have gained entry to the 18th century tearoom and headed straight for the tills, but each time have left empty handed.
David Le Masurier, the owner of the 18th century gatehouse, said all of the burglaries have seemed to follow the same pattern.
He said: “We have been targeted three times by thieves and the past two incidents have happened around November 14. This time we thought we might have been in the clear, but then we had that phone call this morning.
“The alarm sounded around 1.45am and we were called to the site. When we arrived at the tea room we discovered the front door had been kicked through and the frame had been completely broken.
'The real damage is having out home violated'
“Within a minute they managed to get in and they went straight for the till, which was obviously empty, because after all the previous incidents we never keep money on site.
“Like last time they were in and out quickly, they stole an empty cash drawer and damaged a lot of tech and kicked down a solid oak door and wrecked the frame. Again we feel kind of lucky they didn’t smash up our home too badly.
“The real damage is how it feels having our home violated. Believe it or not, Pettigrews is a family, we are here every day and we will get over this like we have before.
“We have them on CCTV, we have a close up of the face of both young guys, we can hear them, we have a great footprint and this time we have some perfect finger prints on the doors. Not only do we have this, but the police do too.”
Despite the burglaries, David said the incident will not dampen the Christmas spirit in the tearoom today and as always it will remain open.
He said: “There have been tears, there will be no sleep, it will cost us money, time and energy. However we will be open later today and we will keep thinking of new ways to protect our home.
'Pettigrew Tea Rooms doesn’t belong to these people'
“We put up our Christmas decorations this week and we’re holding Christmas afternoon tea today, so we are not going to close because of this.
“We’ve cleared up the mess as much as we can and made it look as beautiful as possible and we’ll have to have a proper clean up tonight.
“Pettigrew Tea Rooms doesn’t belong to these people, it is ours and all the great people who like to come and see us to get away from the bad things in life. It is still that place for those people”
see-http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/cardiff-tearoom-been-burgled-third-10485768
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