POLICE ARE KEEPING an open mind that the same person might be responsible for a series of break-ins to business premises in Moray over the Festive period.
Prior raids saw the Brander Arms pub in Lossiemouth broken into before Christmas – followed by the Scotmid Co-Op store on Elgin’s Thornhill Road on Boxing day.
Now a third break-in has taken place at the Serenity Hair and Beauty Salon on Academy Street in Elgin, the premises broken into at around 5.40pm on Tuesday evening but not discovered until staff arrived the following morning.
The thief was caught on CCTV – however, he kept his back to the camera throughout, apparently knowing where it was – before stealing over £200 held from tips and petty cash.
A police spokeswoman said that they had not ruled out the possibility that all three crimes were committed by the same person, saying: “We are looking into a theft by housebreaking on Academy Street in Elgin that took place after 5.40pm on Tuesday (December 27).
“We are keeping an open mind as to whether the incident may be linked to others in the area, inquiries remain ongoing into each of them.”
The Brander Arms raid on December 17 resulted in around £400 being stolen from tip jars, tills and charity collections. The Co-Operative raid saw the thief making off with £60 worth of spirits.
Police are asking anyone who may have information on any of the raids to contact them on 101.