Eyeglass thieves caught on camera

Tamarind Optical in Sydney may want to come up with a new motto: Hey thieves, just because we sell glasses, it doesn’t mean we’re blind.

After several instances of theft over the years, the company installed security cameras. On Monday, the lenses captured a pair of individuals — one of whom was in a wheelchair — making off with multiple pairs of glasses.

Their mugs are now posted on the company’s Facebook page for all the world to see.

Video footage set to lighthearted music shows the two making their way around the store, glancing around furtively and swiping glasses off the display shelves.

Store owner Nathaniel Samson said the police were called because losing inventory to theft is serious, but the comedy of the situation left him with little choice but to make light of it on social media.

“It’s happened a couple of times a year,” he said. “We lose inventory, we lose stock, and it sucks. It sucked enough, it’s disappointing enough, that we installed cameras.”

Samson declined to reveal the value of the glasses taken this week, saying he didn’t want to do anything to encourage thieves.

However, they targeted brand-name sunglasses that might be easy to sell under the table, he said.

“The irony of stealing glasses from an optical store just seemed silly, when you make sure they’re not looking,” said Samson. “There was a whole satire-irony thing that I just couldn’t let go.

In just 12 hours, the Facebook video had been shared more than 130 times and received nearly 4,500 views.

Samson said his store has had great success with social media. The company has done Halloween parody videos and other humorous posts that attracted attention, and an ad shot for Facebook with local Cape Breton characters Tracy and Martina garnered nearly 200,000 views last year.

Samson said insurance doesn’t cover the cost of stolen inventory, and it might be difficult to get replacement stock in time for Christmas.

Staff Sgt. Ken O’Neill, a spokesman for the Cape Breton Regional Police, said the incident is under investigation.

“We have suspects, but no charges yet,” he said Thursday.