Hereford café owner criticises police after three burglaries

But West Mercia Police says crime is being tackled in the city, and a chief inspector said he recognised the big impact of burglaries on businesses.

Bill Gannon, who runs Rocket Café in Church Street, said the damage caused by people breaking into the building was worse than the items they stole.

With three breaks-ins in just six months already this year, Mr Gannon said £100 was taken – but the need to repair smashed windows was frustrating.

He said he'd increased security each time it had happened, and was now considering putting metal bars across the windows to prevent more burglaries.

He slammed Herefordshire Council for not monitoring CCTV cameras, and West Mercia Police for not carrying out more high visibility patrols, as burglars smashed their way in to the café.

Mr Gannon said: "There's been a lot of damage. The till is broken even though we don't have a lot of money here.

"They're obviously druggy guys who are after a bit of money and it's the damage really."

Bill Gannon, of Rocket Café in Church Street, is disappointed with Herefordshire Council and West Mercia Police. Picture: Rob Davies

He added: "We don't need it at all, it's the cost. A small pane of that toughened glass costs around £100, and in my door I've got 15 panes."

He said that the council's CCTV cameras in Church Street, in the shadow of Hereford Cathedral, didn't capture any of the incidents – although he admitted that the burglars were likely to cover their faces anyway.

A Herefordshire Council spokesperson said they were sorry to hear that Mr Gannon was having security issues and its CCTV cameras did monitor the areas 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

But they said the cameras were not for the purpose of monitoring individual buildings, and any business owners with security concerns should follow police advice on how to deter burglars.

Chief Inspector Ross Jones, of West Mercia Police, said reported crime in the area of Church Street was low, and there were no other reported burglaries in Church Street over the last four years.

"I recognise and acknowledge the devastating impact burglary can have on someone and our officers will work with the victim to support them and offer further advice which may help protect their premises and high visibility patrols will of course continue throughout Hereford city centre," he said.

“It is worth noting that we’ve achieved a 42 per cent reduction in commercial or residential burglary across Herefordshire in comparison to the same six months last year."

He said there were a number of patrol strategies to protect people and property from crime, and and officers would continue to work hard to carry these out.

“We also have a dedicated rural and business team for Herefordshire," he said.

"We use a wide range of tactics to target our priority offenders, using covert assets, carrying out joint operations with neighbouring forces and developing community/business links to increase intelligence.

"The team also carry out targeted crime prevention operations, visiting vulnerable premises and promoting the use of products such as Smartwater.

"This is helping to reduce our burglary offences and to build up trust and confidence with communities.”