Edinburgh newsagent '˜shaken' after thieves take safe and till

The owners of a West End newsagent have been left reeling after thieves stole thousands of pounds and jewellery in a late-night raid.

Thieves targeted Sweet Service on Lynedoch Place in the early hours of Monday morning, breaking through the side entry on Drumsheugh Place and making off with the heavy metal safe, the till, personal items and cigarettes.

Kauser and Ulfat Malik, who have owned the store since 1986, have been left shaken by the break-in.

Mr Ulfatullah Malik, who owns Sweet Service convenience store on the corner of Lyndedoch Place. Pic: Greg Macvean

Kauser, 61, said: “We’ve been here safe all these years and apart from a couple of break-ins in the early days we’ve had nothing.”

The break-in was discovered by Ulfat, 64, at around 5.15am on Monday morning when he arrived at the shop to find police already in attendance.

Officers had been alerted by a delivery driver who has access to the shop.

Padlocks on the metal shutters at the side door had been wrenched off and the exterior wooden door kicked in.

More than £3,000 was stolen along with a laptop, iPad, a vacuum cleaner, some items of Kauser’s jewellery and the cigarettes.

Kauser said: “The safe is very heavy, it’s solid metal, it would have taken two people to move it. I’m feeling better today, I was still in shock yesterday and Monday, I had pain all over my body and was exhausted.

“I felt really unsafe. There were muddy feet marks when I came in on Monday and when I saw them I felt really shaky.”

Loyal customers have rallied round the couple who have received flowers, regular telephone calls and people popping in in the wake of the incident.

Kauser said: “We’ve had lots of support. People are absolutely amazing, always asking how they can help us.

“We just hope that somebody saw something on the busy street.

“My attachment is to my jewellery, my daughter gave it to me, and I hope the police come and tell me, ‘Mrs Malik, we’ve found it’.”

Police are carrying out inquiries and told the Maliks that a vehicle that may have a connection to the robbery has been “spotted”.

Kauser said: “The police told us that it had been a busy night for burglars, I think some other shops had been targeted.

“If anyone knows anything, please let the police know.”

Police in West Lothian have appealed for witnesses after a fast-food shop in Linlithgow was broken into at around 2.45am on Tuesday morning.

Three men forced entry to the store and stole a 
three-figure sum of cash before escaping in a car, thought to be a Mini.

Officers in the Borders are on the hunt for information after two break-ins at businesses in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

A grey VW Golf was stolen along with a large sum of cash at around 2.15 am in Hawick before the car was recovered 21 miles away in Kelso where a white Transit van was taken at around 2.45am.