Nuneaton town centre business takes drastic action after police 'not bothered'

[dutchman]

They said at one point they were being targeted between 10 to 15 times a day



A well-known Nuneaton town centre business has been forced to take drastic action to stop shoplifters. The Toolbox has been serving customers from its unique corner position on Coventry Street for more than three decades.

But, due to constantly being targeted by shoplifters, some of whom have been armed, Mitch Ward, who has worked at the store for ten years, told CoventryLive that drastic action has had to be be taken.

The once open-to-browse shop now had to ban shoppers from going inside and a customer service hatch is now in place where the entrance was. This is to not only protect staff, who have been threatened by armed shoplifters, but also stop stock from constantly being stolen from the shop, which has been in the town for 38 years.

"This has been going on for about three years but the past six months have been the worse, at one point we were having between 10 to 15 shoplifters a day," he said. Mr Ward explained that the much-loved hardware shop was being targeted by thieves because of what they sell.

"We used to sell machetes, but we ended up having to stop because they (thieves), were coming in to steal them," he said. "They (the thieves) were basically coming in to nick things to commit crime, they were taking things like bolt cutters and knives."

Neon warnings about CCTV did not deter them. "It got to the point where staff were leaving because they were scared," he said. "We were having thieves come in, open their jackets and show us that they had knives so that we wouldn't stop them stealing."

But he did used to fight back: "I have got scars on my hands where I have tried to stop them in the past," he said. It got to the point where staff ended up having to stay permanently behind the counter as they feared who would come in and what they would try to take.

Mr Ward has claimed that the police locally 'are not bothered' and that frustration led him to not reporting the daily incidents. He even set-up a WhatsApp group with other town centre businesses so that they could share information about suspects.

But the situation reached breaking point. "The last six to eight weeks have been ridiculous, which is why we have had to put the hatch in," he said.

"We love our customers but we have got to a point now where we needed it to stop." He stressed that the business remains open - simply from the hatch.

"Our takings are down around five per cent, as we aren't getting people coming in to browse," he explained. "But when you look at that compared to the stock we were losing, it is a lot better.

"Staff morale is a lot better too. We want people to know that we are not closed, we are trying to make it safer and by doing this, we are stopping crime in town as they (the criminals) are not getting the tools they need to commit crime."

He hit out at police for 'not being bothered' and said: "It has got to the point where we have had to do this to stop the crime," he said, adding that the family owners of the shop have five other branches elsewhere in the area and they do not suffer similar issues.

[dutchman]

Theft-hit store to keep ban on people entering shop



A shop that has suffered a spate of shoplifting says a ban on customers going inside will continue for "as long as it takes".

DIY store Nuneaton Toolbox built a shopfront serving hatch, meaning staff get people's items.

The business has complained that police have not been bothered to respond to reports of crime.

Warwickshire Police said it had been taking "decisive action" against shoplifters for six months.

It denied suggestions it had not supported the store.

Mitchell Ward, who has worked at the shop for a decade, had told Coventry Live that at one point it was "having between 10 to 15 shoplifters a day".

Speaking to the BBC about the serving hatch, Mr Ward said: "So that's going to stay as long as it takes for the police to patrol the town properly. So they have started? Yes. But is that temporary?"

Mr Ward said crime over the last six months had been "a little bit better perhaps, because the police have shown a presence".

But he added: "Previous to that there was no police. That's up until a good five years... it took... many, many hours to come out."