Armed robber returns stolen cash after hearing of shop’s struggles

AN ARMED robber in Belgium handed back the money he had taken from a shopkeeper after hearing there was not much worth stealing because back-toback crises had blighted the business.

Michael Thill, the manager of Le Cellier de Vinalgros in Brussels, described the moment the masked criminal burst into his wine shop wielding a gun.

The thief demanded staff empty the till but he handed back the €110 (£96) in cash after taking pity on the shopkeeper who said his business had been left cash-strapped by the pandemic and the cost of living crisis. “The robber asked us for cash – we only had €110 to give him, but he insisted while threatening us with his gun to give him more, believing that there was a lot of money elsewhere,” Mr Thill said.

“We explained to him that the situation of small shopkeepers was very dire, that after having paid all our charges, salaries, taxes and other expenses, we had nothing left. We also explained to him that there was no more cash in circulation because of the successive crises and because the few people who spent money with us paid by card.”

The robber, who was wearing a motorcycle helmet to obscure his face, then told the staff to keep the money and asked for directions to leave the store. He did not fire the gun but staff were left shaken and filed a police report with CCTV footage of the suspect.

“I almost felt that he felt sorry for us and the sad reality we are in today,” Mr Thill added.

Belgian businesses were once cash rich, with no legislation forcing them to accept card payments. But after several Covid lockdowns, the government introduced legislation making it mandatory for firms to accept bank cards.

Mr Thill said he was thankful that the robber had left the money, but quipped: “I believe retraining is urgently needed for all the little robbers who relied on us small businesses to survive.”