A RESTAURANT in Chipping Sodbury has issued CCTV after a thief broke into the popular eatery through an upstairs window.

A cleaner discovered the break in, which has left staff shaken and upset, at Amigos on Horse Street early this morning.

Till floats and several expensive gadgets were stolen during the raid, which was captured on CCTV at 12.12am on Thursday, May 5.

Manager Dorian Brahimi told the Gazette: “I got a call from our cleaner this morning and she was crying.

“She came in and saw the mess. It was a bit of a shock but we are all fine.”

He said an iPod and several iPads were stole as well as the till floats and considerable damage was caused inside the Mexican tapas restaurant.

“It was mainly material damage but it is not nice,” said Mr Brahimi. “We will have been here in Chipping Sodbury for a year on May 8 and this is the second time we have been broken into.

“Last time they came in through the door but this time it was through an upstairs window.

“When you hear elderly people’s homes are being broken into in the town as well, it is not very nice.”

He added: “We hope issuing the CCTV will help to catch the person responsible.”

A police spokesman said: "An office window was forced and cash from the till, a white iPad and a silver iPod were stolen.

"House-to-house enquiries have been carried out and officers are keen to hear from anyone with information which could help their enquiries.

"It's not clear if there is any link between this incident and recent burglaries of homes in the town but officers are keeping an open mind."

Anyone with any information or who recognises the man in the CCTV images is asked to call police on 101.

Police have issued an appeal for information after three properties in the town were broken into overnight between May 3 and 4. Elderly residents reported thefts in each incident and in one, a 92-year-old woman woke to find an intruder in her bedroom.

Last month CCTV of two women wanted for stealing wallets and purses from elderly shoppers in the town was released and we reported how several shopkeepers had been targeted by a thief attempting to take their tills during opening hours.