A 22-year-old man has been charged because he would have stolen £ 15,000 in handbags from several designer-clothing boutiques.
Two designer shops became the target within 24 hours. The first raid took place in Phoenix Style, in the city of Cobham in Surrey, on January 13.
The next day The sister shop of Phoenix, 21 kilometers away in Wimbledon Village, in the southwest London was the target.
Joshua Grant McKenzie, 22, from Hounslow Road, Feltham, was today accused of theft and will appear on Monday before the Ealing Magistrates' Court.
In a phone call on LBC on Friday, the owner of the boutiques, Paige Mengers, told the Chief Commissioner of Police Sir Mark Rowley that two men 'arranged with tools and intersected the safety wires'.
While Sir Mark listened carefully, Mrs. Mengers continued: 'We even pressed our panic button that is connected to the local police station and yet [Met] have not visited our store and showed no interest. “
The staff had 'clear camera images' of the suspects and the license plate of their flight car.
The Mail on Sunday revealed last week how one of her employees from Wimbledon resigned because she was so traumatized by the burglary.
Two weeks ago, Paige Mengers, 53, had reported both Phoenix Style stores-one in Wimbledon, the southwest of London, the other in Surrey-allegedly under fire within 24 hours.
CCTV images recorded the faces of those who entered the store in Cobham, Surrey
The images were shared on social media with an urgent call for information
However, the Mo insisted that it could not be present, because the raid was a reported case of shoplifting and not theft.
'I pointed out that it can hardly be compared to a child who squeezes candy. In any case, they have not taken the trouble to send someone. We have a crime reference number, nothing else. It would have been reassuring for my female staff to see that the police took this seriously, “Mrs. Mengers told the mail.
After hearing her story during the breakfast show of Nick Ferrari, after the broadcast, Sir Mark promised to record the details of Mrs. Mengers and said that his team would “come back to you about that.”
Within an hour the police contacted her and promised that an agent would visit her in the coming week to take a statement. “It shows that you sometimes have to go to the extreme to get something done,” says Mrs. Mengers.
But only after Mrs. Mengers posted a video on Instagram in which she rejected the efforts of the Surrey police and asked the audience to help her, did she finally receive a visit from agents two days later.
Amazingly enough, one of the police officers admitted that they were only present because of the fuss she made on social media.
None of the Wimbledon store of Mrs. Mengers with the Wimbledon store.
In her flagship boutique, Phoenix Style, in the city of Cobham in Surrey, she installed the latest camera surveillance, together with anti -theft equipment, including security cables for the bags, including a second -hand Hermes Birkin of £ 16,000.
In a phone call on LBC on Friday, Mrs. Mengers told the chief of police Sir Mark Rowley that two men 'armed with tools and intersected the security wires'.
Pheonix Styles posted the camera images on their Instagram page on January 14
In her flagship boutique, Phoenix Style, in the city of Cobham in Surrey, Mrs. Mengers installed the latest camera surveillance, together with anti -theft equipment, including security cables for the bags
Mrs. Mengers paid for a private security company that advised staff on crime prevention. In the meantime, a panic alarm was placed that was linked to a police station in the sister shop of Phoenix in Wimbledon.
She says that her case is again a clear illustration of what she and many others see as the erosion of the social contract between the police and the public. “Our private security company arrived immediately, but why doesn't the police protect us?” she said.
Cobham is called Surrey's answer to Beverly Hills. In addition to football players – it is close to Chelsea's training ground – it has been home to many Hollywood stars over the years, including actors Antonio Banderas, Aaron Eckhart and Stanley Tucci.
The robbers struck shortly before 5.30 pm when the store in Cobham was about to close. While one kept the door open, the other stumbled in and took a wire cutter out.
The terrified staff continued to scream: “My God, my God.” Mrs. Mengers was not in the store at that time, but called the police to vent her anger when they refused to be present.
When she was called back, she assumed that they had changed ideas. “But they just asked if I wanted to submit a complaint,” she says.
“I lost my patience and said,” No, I want you to investigate it! ” But they said they could only handle a complaint. “
It was at this point that Mrs. Mengers posted her video on Instagram. In it she says: “This was not just an attack on our company, but on the feeling of safety that we and our community are dear.”
CCTV images recorded the faces of those who entered the store in Wimbledon
One employee of the store is so traumatized by the incident she has stopped
She addresses her local MP, Dr. Ben Spencer, and says elsewhere in the video: 'As a diligent business owner who pays her business rates on time every month, I have one question for you.
“Why refused to help the Surrey police? All they could give us was a reference number.
'My employees who are members of your community were scared and shocked. Why was no action being taken to reassure them? I hope that as a community we can strive to restore a sense of safety that has been stolen to us. “
Hours after the video appeared, the same two men struck in the Wimbledon Village store.
