A 'hungry' man who begged restaurant staff for hot water, so that he could eat his pot noodle that went on the phone from the chef and with her credit cards on an expenses after she tried to help.
Chef -chef Benjawan Torrance had just opened the Thai Bar & Restaurant in Glasgow around 2.30 pm on Saturday 4 January when the man came out of the street and to the counter.
She and a colleague in the restaurant in the Southside environment of Shawlands felt sorry for him and said yes because he told him that he was 'very hungry', said Mrs. Torrance's man.
But the man has repaid their kindness by wiping the phone and spending more than £ 300 on Morrisons with the two credit cards he found in the housing.
The police hunt for the man and Mrs. Torrance's husband warns other companies that can strike the man again.
“This was not an opportunist. This was meditated in advance, “he told Glasgow Live.
“It really hurt my wife because she just tried to be nice.”
Mrs. Torrance agreed with her husband and told MailOnline: “Of course he knew what he was doing.”
The staff of the Thai Bar & Restaurant in Glasgow had just agreed to give a man hot water for his Potnoodle after he said he was 'very hungry' before he wiped the chef's phone's phone
The man dropped the phone while the staff (including chefs chef Mrs. Torrance) was busy in the kitchen, his movements hidden by an open brown paper food bag on the countertop
She just wanted to do the right thing by offering him hot water: “You can't see people who are hungry.”
The chef added: 'This guy only came in for hot water for his Potnoodle. We would not think he would turn away from him on such a cold day.
“We would think,” it's just a good thing “. We wouldn't even think of anything else, except helping.
'It's just fun to be able to help with small things, that's all we thought. We did not think of people who came to the store, stealing things. '
Mrs. Torrance never expected that it would happen in this restaurant: 'Something like that has never happened to us before.
“We have heard many things in London, things like that have happened, but we would never dream of a local store like this to meet these people.”
She felt sad that she no longer had her phone: 'There are also a lot of information on that phone, including work and photos and everything there. But it is what it is. '
In CCTV images the man who approaches the counter of the kitchen – in the corner of the empty restaurant and visible from the head seat – to make his request.
After handing over the pot of noodle to Mrs. Torrance and her colleague, the man sees the phone on the countertop and extends as if he wants to grab it
The man left the restaurant after stealing the phone, kept his pot noodle and some cutlery given to him by another staff member
After he has handed the Potnoodle to Mrs. Torrance and her colleague, he sees the phone on the counter and extends as if he wants to grab it.
The phone – and the arm movement of the man – are hidden from their immediate view by an open brown paper food bag on the counter.
The man pulled his hand back and wait a few more moments, the man then takes the phone and puts him in his pocket while the staff is busy with other tasks in the kitchen.
Another staff member enters the main restaurant from behind the man while standing at the counter.
They give him some cutlery before the staff in the kitchen give him his Potnoodle.
Mrs. Torrance's husband said she did not know that her phone had initially been stolen because of the bag on the counter in the way of her spotting of the theft.
The couple realized only about 15 minutes later when Mr. Torrance came to gather her and they couldn't find her phone.
They also checked a watch linked to her phone that revealed that her mobile was not in the store.
The phone also had two credit cards in the case and although the couple immediately called their banks to cancel them, they realized that the thief had already spent more than £ 300 at Morrisons.
Mrs. Torrance's husband told Glasgow Live: 'We are still waiting to see what the last songs are, because even after we had canceled the cards, the cards were still dripping. They just kept pumping them until they were stopped.
'It's terrible because, as my wife said it is not in your nature to turn someone away who is hungry. It was in that period when it was really cold. '
He now warns other business owners in the area to be vigilant after the theft.
A spokesperson for the Scotland of the police said: 'We received a report of the theft of a telephone in a building to Kilmarnock Road, Glasgow, around 2.30 pm on Saturday, January 4, 2025.
“Questions are underway.”
The Thai Bar & Restaurant opened in the summer of 2022 with 'modern and environmentally friendly' Thai dishes, which are 'authentic' and of 'the highest quality'.
It won the best Thais restaurant in Scotland in the Scottish Restaurant Awards 2024.
