Savills in Sheffield: Watch moment burglar throws boulder through window

The raider, at Savills Barbers on Devonshire Street, Sheffield, then stepped through the shattered frame and spent more than a minute rifling through the till.

CCTV footage shows him calmly leaving and gesturing to a possible look out before heading towards Devonshire Green.

Owner, Annabel Stonehouse-Davies, said he got away with £500 and a charity box and caused £1,000 worth of damage. It follows a similar burglary at the premises on January 10 which led to a £1,200 insurance claim.

She hit out at a ‘lack of back-up’ from the police - and warned the crimes could see the company shift planned investment in the city centre to a new site in the suburbs.

Annabel, who runs the nine-strong business with husband Joth Davies, said: “It makes us so frustrated and angry when trading is so difficult due to the pandemic.

“We are just not getting the back-up from the police, they’ve not got enough manpower,” she said.

The latest raid, at 5am on Thursday February 3, was discovered by police who organised boarding up and left a note saying scenes of crime officers would attend at 10am, she said. But a beat officer came at 2.30pm.

The note also said not to touch anything but they were forced to restart at lunchtime after losing half a day of trading - on top of the £500 theft and £1,000 repair costs, she added.

Annabel also said she had heard nothing from the force following the January 10 raid, despite officers having a photo, fingerprints, DNA and a possible location for a thief after an iPad was tracked to a house in Broomhall.

They were now considering steel shutters despite the cost, the appearance and fear of them becoming jammed.

The couple are expanding their training academy but are now considering moving it to the suburbs where there is less crime, they say. They have a second barbers in Totley.

A South Yorkshire Police spokeswoman said CSI and officers attended Savills on February 3. An investigation had been launched and enquiries continue.

Following the January 10 raid, officers carried out ‘extensive enquiries including CCTV trawls and forensic examinations’. The investigation has been filed pending forensic analysis and further enquiries, she added.

She added: “We are acutely aware of the disruptive and emotional impact burglaries can have on victims and communities, and in the city centre we have a problem solving plan in place which has helped to reduce burglaries by 17 per cent in 2021 compared to 2020 (which had been reduced by 22 per cent from the year before).

“We understand that despite our successes the impact of a burglary for that victim and their neighbourhood will be foremost in their mind.

“Local officers are embedded in the communities we serve and they work alongside businesses to spot repeat offenders, spikes in offences and types of offending."

The force also offers crime prevention advice and has a dedicated burglary team based in the district, she added.

Anyone with information about either incident is asked to call 101 quoting investigation number 14/28912/22.