CCTV: ‘Organised’ shoplifters steal £500 of meat from Ferndene Farm Shop on Bashley Cross Road in New Milton
“IT’S quite frightening how organised they were” – this was the reaction after four thieves snatched hundreds of pounds of meat from a family-run local produce store in New Milton.
Staff at Ferndene Farm Shop were stunned after being targeted during a quiet afternoon on Monday by the quartet who pilfered the high-value goods in minutes.
One staff member, who wanted to remain anonymous, told the A&T: “It’s a lot of money to lose. We are just a small business.”
CCTV captured the incident, when a blue Peugeot 106 pulled into the store’s car park off Bashley Cross Road.
“It did a loop and then four people – three men and one lady – got out and they all walked into the shop from different directions to make it look like they hadn’t arrived together,” the staff member said.
“They all grabbed a basket and headed straight for the meat counter.”
The quartet each filled up their basket with the most valuable products, including beef topside, lamb shoulder and pork shoulder.
Two of the men walked out first, soon followed by the other man and the woman.
They then fled in the Peugeot which had been parked on nearby Smithy Lane.
“One employee went out, shouting, ‘You’re on CCTV, we’ve got your number plate’, hoping they would drop their baskets and run, but they didn’t,” the staff member continued.
“I presume they’d been in before to know what they were looking for.
“£500 of meat gone in a couple of seconds. Running an independent business is hard enough as it is, so the boss is not happy.”
The store alerted police to the theft that evening, and officers have released CCTV images of four people they want to trace in connection with it.
Although the store has been targeted in “a few” thefts in its 40-plus years, none of them were on such a large scale at once.
Staff are now worried the offenders will strike again.
“It’s quite frightening how organised they were,” the staff member continued.
“Staff are being extra vigilant but, even if they do come in, what are you supposed to do?
“You don’t know what these sort of people have got on them. We don’t want to put staff in danger. It’s just really frustrating.”
Residents shared their shock and voiced their support for the store when it shared news of the theft on social media.
One commented: “Hope they catch the thieving t***s, that was the politest word I could use on here!”
Another wrote: “Sad thing is they know the police will do nothing about it.
“There was a time robbers would wait till darkness and break into a place. Now, bold as brass they just stroll in and do it under people’s noses.”
Officers are urging people to come forward if they can help identify the three men and one woman shown in the CCTV images.
The first man is described as black, aged 20 to 30, about 5ft 10ins tall, medium build, with a black afro, and wearing a black top with grey trousers.
The second is described as white, aged 30 to 35, about 6ft tall, medium build, with short blonde hair and short facial hair, wearing black trousers and a black T-shirt.
The third man was also white, aged 50 to 60, about 6ft tall, large build, with short grey hair. He was wearing a blue T-shirt and light blue shorts.
The woman is described as white, 35 to 40, about 5ft 6ins tall, medium build, with brown hair tied in a bun. She was wearing a floral jumper and black jeans.
A Hampshire force spokesperson said: “We believe the three men and woman in these images can help us with our investigation and would urge them, or anyone who knows their identity, to get in touch with us.
“Also, if you witnessed the incident, saw anything suspicious in the area at the time, or have any CCTV, mobile phone, dash cam or doorbell camera footage which could aid our investigation, please contact us.”
Anyone with information should contact officers online at hampshire.police.uk or by calling 101, quoting 44240278326.
Crimestoppers can also be contacted anonymously at crimestoppers-uk.org or on 0800 555 111.
