A BARNARD Castle businesswoman has been overwhelmed by the response she received after a devastating burglary at her shop featured on a BBC documentary.
Donna Dobson almost called it a day when thieves used a sledgehammer to break down the door of her Fox and Field countrywear store before making off with thousands of pounds worth of Christmas stock in 2018.
However, most of the items were recovered and a man was arrested within 24 hours of the crime. Dramatic CCTV footage of the burglary featured on the BBC programme Caught Red Handed.
The episode also featured interviews with Ms Dobson and Insp Ed Turner, of Barnard Castle Police, who gave additional insight into how one of the burglars was caught. Reviewing the CCTV footage, Ms Dobson said: “It was very traumatic to watch that. And scary as well. It is so brutal and it just broke my heart. I was in tears.
“I couldn’t see a way out of it. Everything I had worked hard for was finished really.”
Insp Turner said it was crucial to recover the items and return them to Ms Dobson as soon as possible because the lead up to Christmas is her busiest time. He said: “The footage Donna was able to share with us at the scene was a golden opportunity to really kick-start the investigation. The suspects, the vehicle, what they had actually done was all caught on the camera system. Very quickly we established the type of vehicle that had been involved in the offence. We could work out the route the car has probably take from Barnard Castle. There are only so many routes out of the town.”
Police established that the car had been stolen a few days before and they tracked it back to Bishop Auckland. They also identified a suspect and caught him while he tried to escape. Inside the home they found a lot of the stolen stock as well as keys to the stolen vehicle.
Insp Turner said: “It was literally like an Aladdin’s cave. The shop has reappeared in someone’s living room.”
Police worked round the clock to process the recovered items so that they could be returned to the shop as quickly as possible. Mrs Dobson said: “It has made me a stronger person. It has made me realise how much I am appreciated by the community and how good our police force are.”
Since being aired the shop has been inundated with calls of support from friends and strangers with one couple from Chesterfield promising to send chocolates and a bottle of local gin. People have also visited the shop’s website and bought items online in support of the business which had come so close to folding.
Mrs Dobson said: “People are so nice really – sometimes we get blinded by all the bad things going on.”
Caught Red Handed episode 20 is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
