Thieves cause thousands of pounds in damage to Lee-on-the Solent restaurant

THOUSANDS of pounds worth of damage has been caused by burglars after a break in at an Indian restaurant.
Damage caused to the Lee Tandoori restaurant in Lee-on-the-SolentDamage caused to the Lee Tandoori restaurant in Lee-on-the-Solent
Damage caused to the Lee Tandoori restaurant in Lee-on-the-Solent

Thieves broke in to Lee Tandoori Restaurant in Lee-on-the-Solent on Friday night and damaged two doors, burglar alarms and stole a till containing £150.

For manager Abu Taher, who has worked at the business on the seafront for 30 years, it has left him shocked and upset.

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He told The News: ‘We have never been broken into before and this is really upsetting.

Damage caused to the Lee Tandoori restaurant in Lee-on-the-SolentDamage caused to the Lee Tandoori restaurant in Lee-on-the-Solent
Damage caused to the Lee Tandoori restaurant in Lee-on-the-Solent

‘We are going to have to replace doors and the alarms and it will probably be a few thousand.

‘Luckily there was only £150 in the till but they have also broken a plug and damaged the electrics which will cost us.

‘I think they broke the alarms as it was giving attention but if the alarms weren’t going off then there could have been more damage.’

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Abu added: ‘We have had to clean up all the mess quickly before the customers arrive as the weekend is our busiest time.

Damage caused to the Lee Tandoori restaurant in Lee-on-the-SolentDamage caused to the Lee Tandoori restaurant in Lee-on-the-Solent
Damage caused to the Lee Tandoori restaurant in Lee-on-the-Solent

‘But we also needed to wait for the police forensics to come and do their work so they could catch these people so it has been difficult.’

Abu got a call from police on Friday night to tell him that a member of the public had reported that there may have been a break in to the restaurant on Marine Parade.

He said: ‘I have not been happy with the way the police have handled it.

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‘They rang me to go and check to see if there had been a break in and didn’t go themselves.

‘In the morning I told them we were very busy in the afternoons when we open and could they send forensics to us in the morning but they haven't been very quick.

‘It seems to me that crime is getting worse in this town and there have been break ins nearby and other crimes.

‘We need more police on the streets to stop this from happening.’

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A Hampshire Constabulary spokesman said: ‘This happened overnight between 11.50pm on November 15 and 7.50am on November 16.‘Thieves broke in through a outside door and stole the till causing some damage.‘The till contained about £150. Nothing else appears to have been taken.‘We are investigating and would ask anyone with information about the crime to contact us on 101 quoting 44190411716.’