Ghost hunters who staked out a building in search of spooky goings-on came face-to-face with shadowy figures of a very different kind – burglars.
But paranormal investigator Mark Whyatt was unfazed by the unexpected guests and bravely confronted the pair, kicking out at them as they fled.
The burglars had broken into Crafty's Airsoft Store, in the city, where Derby Paranormal Investigators were holding an overnight event on Saturday to investigate spooky goings-on, including odd noises.
The store in Full Street sells realistic imitation guns, known as RIFs, for shooting games to buyers who have the proper certification.
Mr Whyatt said it was about 4am yesterday, the investigation had finished and everyone had left apart from himself and his colleague, Nick Donaldson, who were packing up when they heard voices.
The door to the shop was locked but they shone their torches through the glass panels and saw two figures run out of the front door. "I bolted to the front door of the building and kicked both of them as they were riding off on their bikes," said Mr Whyatt.
His kicks failed to make them lose their balance, but he said the second one would certainly be left with a bruise on his leg.
Mr Whyatt, who has previously worked in security, said: "They were all in black and both had balaclava-like masks on and were carrying two large bags."
Jonathan Craft, the owner of the store, said stolen goods were recovered around the building, but he reckoned five or six imitation guns were still missing.
The 33-year-old said: "The thieves were very brave to do what they did because the paranormal investigators were clearly in there, turning the lights on and off and things like that.
"They used a tomahawk to break in through the fire doors and then went for some of the guns on the wall as well as in the drawers.
"Some of the stolen guns were found outside, including near the bins behind the Bikeworks, along with the tomahawk – which hopefully police can get some evidence off.
"But these guys do need to be found because those replicas are convincing and most people would not be able to tell the difference between them and a real gun."
Mr Craft has run Crafty's Airsoft Store for two years and moved from Abbey Street to Full Street in September last year.
He said: "We've had burglar alarms go off in the past but not an actual break-in like this.
"It seems like they knew what they were doing. The damage is not too bad, though – mainly the doors and the till."
Police confirmed the incident was reported to them through a 999 call on Sunday at about 4.15am.
Anyone who saw the incident, or knows the whereabouts of the stolen imitation firearms, is asked to call police on 101.
Source
No comments:
Post a Comment