Ayr Local on the High Street were forced to close after three men broke in and stole a huge haul of smoking products
Shop owners in Ayr were reduced to tears after thieves made off with £25,000 worth of tobacco, cigarettes, and vapes in the early hours of the morning.
Ayr Local, a high-street retailer, was forced to close on Sunday following a raid in which burglars stole a five-figure haul of merchandise.
According to reports, three males broke into the convenience shop and cleared out the shelves containing smoking supplies like cigarettes, tobacco, vape oils, and vape pens.
After working hard to make the new store a success, shop landlord Anjam Hussain claims that the store owners are devastated.
The shop only opened in December and Anjam has told how owner, Sidra Arooj and her family have put “everything into” the business venture.
Anjam told Ayrshire Live: “I got a call to the shop at 3.30am on Sunday morning.
Three men entered via the rear and stole all of the tobacco, cigarettes, and vape pens.
“I have the utmost sympathy for the owner and her spouse—they have given it everything.”They made a great success in their first few months of business, they operate differently, and they bring in a tonne of trendy sweets, which has been incredibly well-liked.
“They were completely destroyed when I visited the store on Sunday.
“The proprietor wept for several hours. I thought for a moment they were just going to give up and return the keys.
“People’s lives are ruined by these kinds of crimes.”
Anjam went above and beyond to assist in repairing the harm caused by thieves looting the store.
After backup stock was located, the store was able to reopen on Monday; nonetheless, the owners are facing significant challenges due to the value of the stolen goods.
“They had to go and replace all the stolen tobacco, vapes, and cigarettes,” Anjam continued.
All of that is worth a total of £25,000. It causes serious harm to any company.
Police have acknowledged that they are looking into a break-in that resulted in the theft of goods valued at at least $5,000.
“Police received a report of a break-in to a shop on High Street, Ayr, which took place overnight,” a spokeswoman for Police Scotland stated at approximately 7.45 am on Sunday, March 24. Investigations have shown that goods worth an estimated five figures were taken from the store.
Anyone with information should call 101 and mention incident 0864 of March 24, 2024, as police are now conducting an inquiry into the case. Alternatively, if you would rather to remain anonymous, you can phone Crimestoppers at 0800 555 111.
