Owner’s fury as burglars make off with £1,500 from safe in frozen yogurt shop
THE owner of a frozen yogurt shop targeted in a weekend raid has hit out at the burglars responsible.
YoggieBerrie in north Belfast was broken into just before midnight on Saturday.
Gavan Wall, who owns the Wall Group, a chain of Spars, Subways and YoggieBerrie, slammed the culprits.
“We were burgled by mindless thugs on Saturday night, by the type of people who destroy the communities in which we live. We’ve suffered a significant financial loss as a result,” he said.
Gavan released images of the burglary on the company’s Facebook site, describing the thieves as professional.
He added: “They were wearing gloves and masks, one even had on a protective body suit, armed with crowbars, it seemed professional,theyknewwhattheywere doing.
“They managed to get away with the safe that had £1,500 in it. To an independent business, it’s a substantial amount.”
The robbery was discovered when employees entered the shop on Sunday morning and noticed that the till and some cupboards were open.
Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, Gavan added: “They rang me in a panic, I told them to go out the back and see if anything had been taken, that is when we discovered the safe was gone and the back door was open.” The incident came hours after the Wall Group made a significant contribution to a local children’s football team in north Belfast. The company has also agreed to support similar projects with Crusaders Youth.
Gavan added: “I am shocked. Just earlier on that day we had handed over money to Cliftonville Football Development Centre Solitude Tournament, we were one of the main sponsors.
“We are always trying our best to contribute to the local community of north Belfast.”
This incident follows a spate of burglaries in the area.
Gavan said he was determined not to let the theft deter him.
Appealing for information, he added: “We would be grateful for community support in the coming weeks and for people to still come in, to help make sure that we are not shaken from our ability to support our community.
“Together we can showcase all that is good in north Belfast.”