Bad break for Bo'ness post office

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BAD luck comes in threes - just ask Bo’ness shopkeeper Mohammad Sajid.

In May 2010 his shop burned down after an electrical fault, last week he was forced to shut his sub-Post Office for two days owing to another power line fault and - on Friday evening - he was burgled, losing £5000-worth of cigarettes.

Only minutes after pulling down the shutters at the end of another day’s work two raiders broke into Newtown Post Office in Baker Street, Bo’ness - just three weeks after it re-opened following the disastrous fire.

The entire incident was captured on the shop’s brand new state-of-the-art CCTV system. It shows two burly men approaching the rear door, hauling a security light off the wall and forcing their way into the building.

They are then seen shoveling cigrettes from the wall-mounted display unit into a plastic box and exiting the premises.

The alarm was raised at 8.34pm and by the time a member of staff arrived on the scene at 9pm the raiders had disappeared.

Said Sajid (46): ‘‘I’ve been trading in Bo’ness for more than 20 years without incident - not even a hint of grafitti - and now this happens.

‘‘The fire, which was not our fault was a massive disaster. We were delighted to be back in business again but last week was scary.’’

‘‘The road outside was closed for a time and I had to shut the Post Office for two days until Scottish Power fixed the cable fault.’’

Sajid’s insurance company gave his security the green light prior to the gala re-opening last month but, ever wary, Sajid and his staff hd been talking about tightening it up just prior to the break-in.

‘‘We agreed that, since we’d never been targetted in all these years, we were happy with things as they were and do some other jobsstill to be attended to.

‘‘I even got a quote for strengthening the back door. I wish now I’d agreed to go ahead with the work.’’

Sajid said his customers had been ‘‘shocked and sympathetic’’.

‘‘They are disgusted,’’ he said.

A spokesman for Central Scotland Police said: ‘‘Inquiries are continuing and we urge members of the public to contact us with any information in relation to this incident.

‘‘We also wish to warn members of the public who may be offered cigaretttes at reduced prices that these may have been stolen.’’

*TWO men have been arrested following a cash machine incident in Bo’ness.

On February 3 and February 27 this year customers using the ATM at Scotmid, Linlithgow Road, complained to staff that the machine had failed to dispense their money.

On examination it was was found that a metal panel had been fitted to the cash dispenser panel which collected the money.

Two 21 year old men were detained and were remanded in custody following an apppearance at Falkirk Sheriff Court.

Central Scotland Police reminded ATM users to take care and report immediately any attachments to machines or behaviour from persons around them which may seem odd or unusual.