Burglary caught on Shoreditch high-tech firm’s secret camera as raiders try smashing CCTV
CCTV police issued of three men they want to trace after burglary - Credit: MPS
A £50,000 raid at high-tech company in east London has been caught on the firm’s own hidden CCTV cameras, Scotland Yard has revealed.
Now detectives are using the footage of the Valentine’s Day raid—which also shows one of the three men damaging a camera as he realises it has been filming him—in a public appeal to track down the intruders.
Camera equipment, a laptop and mobile phones were taken during the night-time break-in at Bezzie Technology close to the Old Street roundabout at Paul Street in Shoreditch.
The CCTV in the building, timed around 1am on February 14, caught images of three figures forcing their way in with a crowbar.
The premises appear to have been searched for about half-an-hour. The three are then seen leaving with the equipment.
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“We have clear images—despite their efforts to destroy the footage and conceal their identities,” Det Insp Paul Ridley said.
“This was an organised raid which was clinically executed. But the burglars didn’t count on the foresight of the business that had installed covert cameras.”
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The intruders, described in their mid-40s, are seen wearing orange hi-vis jackets. One of them, also wearing a hooded top, found a covert camera before damaging it.
Bezzie Technology’s James Haworth said: “The burglars destroyed a lot of property including doors which they forced open.
“This has had an impact on our business. We feel violated that these men have been in our personal space and rummaged through our individual effects.”
Security at the premises has now been tightened, but the company revealed it faces soaring insurance premiums.
Detectives say they’re confident “someone will know these men”—one is distinctive with a pronounced gait in his walk, a large gap between his mouth and nose and “a curious swinging of his right arm”.
They are appealing for anyone recognising them or with information to contact Hackney CID on 101, or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555111, or by tweeting @MetCC.
