Burglars have broken in to a popular Hoole bar for the second time in three months leaving staff devastated.

Staff at The Suburbs have been left feeling vulnerable after burglars wearing hoodies targeted the bar, hiding in the car park until bar staff locked up before breaking-in.

But the thieves may soon be caught, after staring straight into a CCTV camera and leaving fingerprints all over the place during the failed robbery at 1.15am on Monday (August 18).

The burglars targeted the bar following a busy race weekend, but left empty handed after being spooked by an alarm and trying to rip it from the wall.

The break in is the second time the bar has been targeted, despite only opening in December.

In May masked burglars raided the Charles Street bar, stealing handfuls of cash from the tills and ripping the safe off the wall.

They have never been caught, and staff say police have since contacted them to inform them they have dropped the investigation.

Speaking to The Chronicle manager Lauren Gathercole said the burglaries had made staff feel vulnerable and appealed for anyone with any information to come forwards.

“We all work so closely together, we have all been here from the start, it is like our home,” said Lauren, who said the burglars had hidden outside while four staff members were working inside the bar.

“We feel like it is not safe. They were waiting outside for us to leave.

“That they could do this to a small independent business, it makes you wonder what they wouldn’t do.”

Staff at The Suburbs - which has received rave reviews since it was opened by former Bar Lounge staff Kingdom Thenga and Shaun Lodge -have posted CCTV images of the haphazard criminals on Facebook in the hope of catching them.

The images show:

  • At 1.15am two men walk across the car park and peer over the wall into the bar.
  • They disappear from view, but are seen jumping into the outside patio at 1.40am - five minutes after staff leave.
  • The men, who are wearing hoodies and have their faces partially covered by scarves, cover one camera but stare straight into the next as they break into the bar.
  • CCTV shows them looking around the building as the alarm goes off.
  • They flee and drive off in a white car waiting for them in the car park.

Police, who arrived at the scene at the same time as owner Shaun Lodge, have said that they are currently reviewing CCTV from businesses in the area and CSI have carried out investigations at the crime scene.

“It is upsetting, but at the same time it will make us stronger,” said Lauren, saying lessons had been learned and stringent security measures had been put in place following the May break-in.

Owner Shaun said: “It has upset all our staff, we feel that someone has come into our home and damaged our belongings.

“The impact this will have on our business luckily this time wasn’t too severe. It has obviously upset and angered all of our staff as we are all so close and involved with the business.

“It has hit us all very hard and the staff have taken it personally.”

Anyone with any information or who may have seen anything suspicious is urged to contact Cheshire police on 101.