Burglar alarm 'ignored' as hair salon suffers break-in
THE owner of a city centre hair salon has been left devastated after a break-in.
Thieves stole £800 of charity cash, £200 in takings, and eight hair straighteners worth £900 after getting into Essensuals, in Long Row, through a first-floor window.
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Crime victim: Heidi Hamilton, owner of Essensuals Hairdressing, in Long Row.
The break-in happened between 5.30pm on Sunday, March 25, and 9.30am on Monday, March 26.
Salon owner Heidi Hamilton said the break-in activated the salon's alarm, but the incident was not reported until a stylist found the salon ransacked on Monday morning and called the police.
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"I was absolutely devastated," she said.
"These crooks did a horrible thing. We spent the rest of the day trying to tidy it up."
Mrs Hamilton said she was surprised the police had not been called to the incident earlier. "I can't believe no one reacted to our alarm going off in the city centre.
"It must have still been fairly light outside and there would have been people in town, but no one bothered to phone the cops."
To boost security, Mrs Hamilton has now had a louder alarm installed to prevent similar incidents in the future.
The £800 had been raised as part of a 24-hour hair-styling marathon, which was held last monthto raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.
Staff at the salon continued to collect donations throughout the month and had just finished counting up the cash. The event was held in memory of senior stylist Ashley Garsden's grandfather Albert Benson. Mrs Hamilton described the event as "a great success" and said she hoped the stolen money would be covered by the insurance.
Police are investigating the incident. They are currently examining CCTV images and are urging anyone with any information to contact them on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Comments
by KirkRaz
Thursday, May 31 2012, 12:08AM
“Have an installed surveillance camera? If yes, and it can help.
http://tinyurl.com/cm3csmj”
by stannzpie23
Saturday, April 07 2012, 3:36PM
“Why leave that amount of cash on the premises in the first place...there is a bank less that 50 yards from where the shop is and several building societies..quite silly really!”
by nbowling
Wednesday, April 04 2012, 11:35PM
“The trouble is that nobody listens to alarms any more , I Run http://tinyurl.com/bpapppy and I normally suggest fitting speech dialers , once fitted they will ring your mobile or landline if you have an intruder.”
by nbowling
Wednesday, April 04 2012, 11:34PM
“The trouble is that nobody listens to alarms any more , I Run http://tinyurl.com/bpapppy and I normally suggest fitting speech dialers , once fitted they will ring your mobile or landline if you have an intruder.”
by rastalove
Wednesday, April 04 2012, 9:24PM
“That makes her sound a bit rough, calling the police "cops".”
by bristles08
Wednesday, April 04 2012, 9:15PM
“Have a tamper proof wall safe installed for petty cash, charity collections etc, with good CCTV coverage of the interior.Also go on line for some good
sound crime prevention advice.”
by Roofie22
Wednesday, April 04 2012, 8:36PM
“Why on earth didn't they bank the cash at the end of the day instead of leaving it in the sallon?”
by okson
Wednesday, April 04 2012, 5:20PM
“silly leaving cash around”
by inoffthered
Wednesday, April 04 2012, 1:12PM
“Beckermint,
I think it depends on whether the alarm is automatically routed through to the police or an alarm company response centre who then call the police themselves.
If it was just an alarm with no direct link to a third party, it would depend on a member of the public hearing the alarm and then calling 999. The reality is that in the city centre, it can often be difficult to know which building has been/is being burgled and has triggered the alarm and 99.999% of pedestrians would probably ignore it anyway.”
by sime64
Wednesday, April 04 2012, 12:44PM
“A horrible thing to happen and to have cash destined for a charity stolen is a tough blow indeed. Prehaps one day the scum who did this may need a Macmillian nurse themselves. I hope the insurance covers the money lost.”