Pair sought over church break-in
BUNGLING thieves broke through a window and ransacked a Southport town centre church on Tuesday morning.
A man and woman forced their way into the Grace Baptist Church in the early hours and caused damage to internal doors but failed to steal anything of value.
Police now want to find the pair, amid suggestions they could be linked to other incidents at nearby businesses around the same time.
They are described as a white man about 5ft 8in, wearing a black coat and hooded jacket, and a white woman of about 5ft 10in who had her hair in a bun and was wearing a black parka.
Community Inspector Graham Fisher called on them to listen to their consciences and consider the impact of their actions.
Annie McTaggart, landlady of the Wellington pub in Eastbank Street, said she saw a man and a woman trying to break into her premises around the same time.
She said that they set off the pub’s silent burglar alarms and attempted four times to break into the pub.
She said: “It was about 2am, my side door alarm went off. I looked out and I couldn’t see anyone but the alarm wouldn’t reset so I knew they were still around.
“I checked the CCTV and could see their breath from where they were hiding at the side.”
After repeatedly trying to break in through the doors and windows, which are protected with galvanised steel, the pair eventually gave up and moved on elsewhere.
CCTV footage also showed the pair kissing in the street before their failed robbery.
“It’s lucky they didn’t get in here,” Annie said, “But if they did get in here it’s the worst thing they could have done because there are so many cameras and the alarm is so loud it would terrify anyone.”
The pair were then seen leaving in the direction of Queen Anne Street, where the Forge Brasserie also suffered a breakin.
Annie, 67, said: “Someone from the Forge came about 10am and said they’d been broken into. They’d gone through a top window and broke a big gin bottle and knocked over some coins.”
CCTV images from a reported burglary at the
Metro Bar and Hotel were shared online last week and Annie believes the man pictured could be the same person she saw outside her pub.
“On the CCTV, the guy’s got a long nose and so has this one, you can see the shape of it when he stands sideways, it stands out.”
She plans to hold a charity night at the pub on Saturday, October 26 to support the church and is also offering to take in donations for its toy collection which is given to children around the world.
Southport police Community Inspector Fisher said: “It will no doubt come as extremely disappointing news for the community to hear a place of worship has been targeted in this way.
“While inquiries are ongoing to establish whether anything was taken, the fact that offenders have damaged a window and doors means the church will now have to invest time and money on repairs, and has caused significant distress and inconvenience to all involved with the church.
“I would like to appeal to the consciences of the offenders and ask them to consider the impact their actions have had on the church and community as a whole.
“We would also appeal to anyone who was in the Princes Street area on Monday night into Tuesday morning to contact us if they remember seeing anything suspicious.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Merseyside police via social media or by calling 101 and quoting incident reference 19100597259. Alternatively, contact the the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, on 0800 555 111 or using its online form.
DO you have a story for the Southport Visiter? Please email reporter Jamie Lopez at: jamie. lopez@reachplc.com