Shopkeeper slams 'the worst thief in the world'

Vince Ayris outside his shop Vince Ayris outside his shop

A SHOPKEEPER has said the thief who broke into his store at the weekend is ‘the worst criminal in the world’ after he stole the wrong part of the till.

The hapless criminal smashed the window of Vince Ayris’ shop, in Havelock Street, with a brick at 1.25am on Sunday, before returning 15 minutes later to kick the glass in and take the cash register.

Vince, who runs the store specialising in shoe repair, key cutting and engraving, is now urging shop owners in the area to be vigilant.

“They snatched the till but because I have split the till all they took away was the cash register.

“I have still got the drawer, which only had a bit of change in it,” he said.

“I have got a lot of zippos and lighters and even a bowl of tips but he didn’t take any of it.

“We’re going to put the brick on a little wooden plaque. He gets the award for the world’s worst criminal.”

When the thief kicked in the window, he set off Vince’s alarm system. The alarm company phoned Vince to warn him there was an intruder at the store.

“I responded like Batman – I got here and parked at the top of the street. When you look at the CCTV it looks like I passed the guy on Eastcott Hill,” said Vince.

“I was so close to catching him, which is the frustrating thing.”

The thief, who is white and in his late 20s, was wearing blue jeans and a dark coat with the hood up.

“It’s just annoying. It is mindless damage and it’s happening more and more because it’s so desperate out there,” Vince said.

“I’ve got friends who will help me repair the damage. This is the fifth time this has happened to me now.

“Swindon is such a great community but it lets itself down with these scumbags. If I had caught him he would have been strapped to the lamp post.”

Vince is stepping up security at the store and is urging other businesses to be careful.

“If one has hit me you can almost guarantee one is going to happen somewhere else.

“It needs to be highlighted because other shop owners need to pick up their security and make sure it’s locked down,” he said.

“I won’t tolerate it, it’s just not right. I am getting a new camera system installed so I can get a sharper picture.”

A spokesman for Wiltshire Police said they were called to the scene at 1.55am after reports that a window had been smashed and the till had been taken. Officers are looking at CCCTV footage.

Witnesses or anyone with information should call Wiltshire Police on 101 or Crimestoppers, where information can be left anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

Comments(27)

Affronted says...
11:13am Tue 19 Feb 13

Such a crying shame this should happen at all, but to happen to one of the nicest tradesmen in the area fills me with disgust. I have been a regular customer here for years and the service is always very friendly, he doesn't deserve this and the scumbag who did it should be ashamed of himself!

Even Angrier Monkey says...
11:24am Tue 19 Feb 13

Vince sounds like a top bloke

PJC says...
11:32am Tue 19 Feb 13

Sorry to hear about this. Vince's shop is excellent. We always use it, and the service is top notch!

Hearditallbefore says...
11:43am Tue 19 Feb 13

Vince is top man, has been excellent trader for years.

Davey Gravey says...
12:27pm Tue 19 Feb 13

Burglaries seem to be in the rise. I'm sure the police will know the few people who tend to do these crimes. Just got to catch the scumbags so they can get off with a suspended sentence when rob ross pleads about their drug addiction.

Tim Newroman says...
1:02pm Tue 19 Feb 13

Yes, you can guarantee the police know who did this. You can also guarantee that they'll be defended in court by the Victoria Road lawyer and you can guarantee that the local judge will let the criminal off, again.

This is the main reason decent people such as Mr Ayris are the unfortunate victims of crime on a regular basis.

Had the criminal concerned been in prison - as, no doubt, his record will show he should have been - this latest crime would not have been possible.

Affronted says...
3:21pm Tue 19 Feb 13

There have been several house burglaries close to where I live, whatever the statistics say crime is definitely on the increase in Swindon. There should be more deterrents and punishments that's for sure. It's not rocket science!!!!

LordAshOfTheBrake says...
6:04pm Tue 19 Feb 13

The pathetic Rob Ross sob stories do seem very prevalent in getting soft sentencing for habitual criminals

He does seem to make a good living defending the indefensible.

Captain T says...
7:12pm Tue 19 Feb 13

The tragedy of all this is if he had caught the scumbag and strapped him to the lamppost, who would the police have arrested?

A) The thief
B) The innocent victim

Answers on a postcard

Tim Newroman says...
8:24pm Tue 19 Feb 13

LordAshOfTheBrake wrote:
The pathetic Rob Ross sob stories do seem very prevalent in getting soft sentencing for habitual criminals

He does seem to make a good living defending the indefensible.
The thing is, you really can't blame defence lawyers for trotting out all the usual excuses and lies that they know work on the judges. It's their job to hoodwink the judiciary and they mange it every time.

The blame and responsibility lies with those who allow themselves to be made fools of on a routine basis.

itsamess3 says...
8:59pm Tue 19 Feb 13

Tim Newroman
Do be very careful when making claims against a very competent solicitor and advocate.
Singling out one of hundreds because it suits your agenda. As you should know both prosecution-defence and the magistrates or judge have copies of all the required reports before sentencing and if any party lies-any party can-and will report the offending party as all are bound to a code of conduct.

Bimbosforjustice says...
11:52pm Tue 19 Feb 13

We need to work with this offender to help integrate him into society and rehabilitate him

RichardR1 says...
7:01am Wed 20 Feb 13

Mr Itsamess3 may I suggest you re-read what Tim actually said before coming out with yet another sanctimonious comment.

He was actually defending lawyers and didn't mention him by name, he merely included the previous quote, so if you want to have a pop at someone then may I suggest LordA, although in fairness what he says is true. Every town will have a specialist criminal solicitor who all the scrotes go to, in Swindon it's Rob's firm. Nothing with wrong with that at all. Solicitors actually actively seek clients in their speciality.

itsamess3 says...
7:33am Wed 20 Feb 13

Perhaps you should read my post again as my emphasis was the accusation of claimed lies in a court of law. Something you are familiar with.

LordAshOfTheBrake says...
8:04am Wed 20 Feb 13

Search this web site for Rob Ross and here's a few examples.

http://www.swindonad
vertiser.co.uk/news/
10235461.Highworth_a
ccountant_spared_jai
l_after_paying_herse
lf___28k/

Quote "Rob Ross, defending, said his client had experienced a traumatic upbringing which left her psychologically scarred. "


Ah welkl thats ok to steal 28K then....!


http://www.swindonad
vertiser.co.uk/archi
ve/2013/01/10/Malmes
bury+News+%28malmesb
ury_news%29/10153762
.Malmesbury_armed_ro
bber_is_jailed_for_8
_years/

Quote "Rob Ross, defending, said his client, who has a history of crime dating back to his early teens, was in the grip of a drug addiction at the time he committed the offences"

Quote "Mr Ross said: “All I can do on Mr Pike’s behalf is pass on to the court, and most specifically to Mrs Bird, his profound apologies and the remorse he feels for what he did because it is utterly out of character for him. "


This is an interesting one as the to quotes appear to contradict each other. History of crimes yet its out of character.....!

itsamess3 says...
8:30am Wed 20 Feb 13

Lord
Can you prove any of those claims to be untrue-be careful--you could lose your internet.

LordAshOfTheBrake says...
8:52am Wed 20 Feb 13

@itsamess3

The term I used was "pathetic sob stories". I don't really care if the stories are true or not. They should not be used to justify an individuals criminal actions in order to reduce the punishment for crimes.


The links and quotes are genuine from this site.


Your point is what? That you failed to read properly again? For someone with an ego the size of a planet you need to pay greater attention to detail.

Tim Newroman says...
8:55am Wed 20 Feb 13

itsamess3 wrote:
Perhaps you should read my post again as my emphasis was the accusation of claimed lies in a court of law. Something you are familiar with.
I named nobody, very deliberately. I made no direct accusations, very deliberately. Your silly attempts at scaremongering do not concern me, in the slightest.

Just one question, though: do you believe that no lies are ever told in court by laywers?

It would make a very refreshing change for you to simple answer a direct question with the 'Yes' or 'No' answer that it requires.

I won't hold my breath.

Tim Newroman says...
8:58am Wed 20 Feb 13

itsamess3 wrote:
Lord
Can you prove any of those claims to be untrue-be careful--you could lose your internet.
He hasn't made any claims, he's merely quote a person's OWN words and, correctly, pointed out the inconsistencies.

It is very common for those involved in the legal profession to make threats and try to intimidate people, but claiming someone might 'Lose their internet' is hysterical. It also shows a marvellous lack of awareness of how the Internet actually works.

itsamess3 says...
9:12am Wed 20 Feb 13

Internet law works very well.
It would be rather foolish to say no solicitor/advocate/b
arrister/counsel has never lied in court--in the same way as it would be wrong to say no policeman does as there are so many good examples of lawyers being uncovered.
However-making claims on a public forum that are-or capable of being proved untrue can be dealt with harshly.
Words taken out of context prove zip.

Tim Newroman says...
10:00am Wed 20 Feb 13

itsamess3 wrote...

It would be rather foolish to say no solicitor/advocate/b

arrister/counsel has never lied in court

So, you do agree that some lawyers lie in court sometimes.

What you do not know is that people have a wide range of direct, first hand knowledge about certain individuals that allow them to know precisely what those individuals are.

From certain posts above, it would seem plenty of people know far more than you.

LordAshOfTheBrake says...
10:18am Wed 20 Feb 13

itsamess3 wrote:
Internet law works very well.
It would be rather foolish to say no solicitor/advocate/b

arrister/counsel has never lied in court--in the same way as it would be wrong to say no policeman does as there are so many good examples of lawyers being uncovered.
However-making claims on a public forum that are-or capable of being proved untrue can be dealt with harshly.
Words taken out of context prove zip.
Which claim and by whom are you referring to?

Tim Newroman says...
10:37am Wed 20 Feb 13

itsamess3 wrote:
Internet law works very well.
It would be rather foolish to say no solicitor/advocate/b

arrister/counsel has never lied in court--in the same way as it would be wrong to say no policeman does as there are so many good examples of lawyers being uncovered.
However-making claims on a public forum that are-or capable of being proved untrue can be dealt with harshly.
Words taken out of context prove zip.
I didn't say anything about 'Internet law', I merely pointed out that your suggestion that a person's access to the internet could be removed is *hysterical*.

RichardR1 says...
12:41pm Wed 20 Feb 13

Wow 3 hours and nothing further from out resident genous, he must have lost his Wiki link.

RichardR1 says...
12:43pm Wed 20 Feb 13

I know I exaggerated but he will now use that to divert away from the fact again he has made himself look a fool. At least he hasn't told us all about his relatives, that are policeman, Judges, Barristers and the like. YET.

Tim Newroman says...
12:51pm Wed 20 Feb 13

RichardR1 wrote:
I know I exaggerated but he will now use that to divert away from the fact again he has made himself look a fool. At least he hasn't told us all about his relatives, that are policeman, Judges, Barristers and the like. YET.
And don't forget a 'family member' in every small village up and down Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Dorset.

itsamess3 says...
3:18pm Wed 20 Feb 13

The usual stupid remarks boys are out to play.
Poor old chap must regret reporting the attempt if he read this lot.

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