Thieves steal collection box in Lymington charity shop raid

THE manager of the British Red Cross charity shop in Lymington expressed her disgust after thieves smashed their way in overnight and ripped a collection box from the counter.

A rear window was broken, along with its wooden framing, to gain access to the store, which is housed within a listed building in High Street, during last Thursday night.

Once inside, the offenders damaged the serving counter to remove the Perspex collection box, which makes up one corner. This contained change donated towards the charity which supports people in crisis both locally and across the globe.

Sue Root, who has run the shop for seven years, was informed about the raid by police at 7am the next day, minutes after the alarm had been raised by a staff member from neighbouring Poundland.

“Basically, all they got was up to £12 in 5ps and 10ps,” she told the A&T.

“The amount of money taken is so minute compared with the cost of repair. This is a listed building and the replacement window will have to be specially made.

“This particular counter has been discontinued, so replacing it is going to be difficult, which is annoying. I’m disgusted really.”

Anyone with information should contact Hampshire Police on 101, quoting crime reference number 44190117353, or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.