Thief steals charity pot at Claremont Pier in Lowestoft

CCTV footage shows the moment a woman snatches a donations box for the refurbishment of Claremont Pier in Lowestoft over the weekend.

The incident took place at around 1.30pm on Sunday, June 23, during the First Light Festival, when a woman approached the cash desk, distracting a member of staff.

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Arcade manager, Benjamin Ayers, has worked at Claremont Pier for more than 23 years, "I've been through all sorts, but incidents like this seem to be getting worse", he said.

Claremont Pier, Lowestoft (Image: Claremont Pier)

"It was absolutely mobbed in here, I thought it might have been some teenagers, I was surprised to see on CCTV that it was a lady in her 30s or 40s."

Images show the woman inspecting three charity pots at the cash desk.

Asking questions to the member of staff who was manning the desk, she shifts one of the pots out of view before slipping it into a carrier bag.

Images shows the woman inspecting three charity pots at the cash desk (Image: Claremont Pier)

After the member of staff realised that the charity pot was missing, Mr Ayer reported the incident to officers who were patrolling the festival.

Posting the incident on social media, the community responded with outrage.

While some locals said they recognised the woman, others reported that she may have stolen from businesses in the area.

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“It's made us a bit more wary of everything, making sure things are locked down, staff have been told to keep an eye out", Mr Ayers said.

The theft follows another incident at the pier at the same time a few weeks prior, after a young boy stole a six-foot-tall teddy bear from the pier. 

CCTV footage captures the moment the boy carried the grand prize "worth more than £100" out of the arcade over the May bank holiday weekend on May 28.