STAFF at Weymouth’s Sambô Bar & Grill have spoken about the moment a brazen thief stole hundreds of pounds worth of alcohol from the cellar while the restaurant was packed with customers - as he was jailed for the crime.
Daryl Peter Francis Flynn admitted the burglary when he appeared at Poole Magistrates Court yesterday.
The 37-year-old, who lives in a flat above the restaurant in Abbotsbury Road, was already on licence and was given a 16-week custodial sentence, and ordered to pay a £128 surcharge and £85 in prosecution fees.
Dorset Police confirmed they received the initial report of the burglary at 9.26pm on Saturday, October 2.
Poole Magistrates’ Court heard that he was found filling a bag with alcohol worth between £700-£1,000.
Flynn, who was intoxicated at the time, had told a staff member: “I need to compensate myself as I have a leak and I am taking your alcohol.” He then offered £50 for them not to call police.
Staff at the restaurant said Flynn entered the cellar, which is accessed via a separate door at the entrance to the building, and took spirits including vodka, gin, Hennessey brandy, whiskey, wine, champagne, and cachaça a Brazilian liquor.
Workers were able to intervene during the incident thanks to a table of customers who discreetly raised the alarm about a man acting suspiciously outside the building.
Astonishingly, aside from those who alerted staff, diners at the Brazilian restaurant are said to have been unaware of the drama as staff did their best to apprehend the intruder whilst continuing to serve food as if nothing was happening.
Assistant manager Joshua Hill-Walsh said: “A man brazenly walked in during our busiest time, at around 9pm on Saturday evening. A table of ladies noticed someone who appeared to be acting suspiciously outside the building and raised the alarm to one of my employees.”
Read more: Man arrested in Ranelagh Road after allegations of sexual communications with a child
Bar manager Harry Burton was in the middle of making mojitos when a customer approached the bar.
“I’d just ran out of Bacardi mid-Mojito so was about to go to cellar anyway when a group of ladies said there was a guy lurking in the entrance,” he said.
“I was just baffled with how brazen the guy was.”
Mr Hill-Walsh said that when staff challenged him he became defensive and tried to give a feeble excuse for why he was there.
“Then he attempted offer us £50 not to call the police,” he added. “There was no remorse - he just tried to talk his way out of the situation. Then when we refused to accept his offer of money, he just legged it.
“We heard him trying to call a taxi and we tried to barricade a door to stop him getting away until the police arrived, but he must’ve jumped out of a window.”
Staff kept their cool, however, and carried on serving as normal.
“We didn’t want to spoil everyone’s night so we managed to keep on serving people as if nothing was happening,” Mr Hill-Walsh added.
“It was so bizarre it was almost comical - the cheek of it, during middle of a busy shift - how stupid can you be?”
He added: “Instinct just kicked in - I didn’t really have time to think about what was going on, other than to try and get back what was stolen, and to call 999.
It was a joint effort to do our best to stop him, and keep everything running smoothly for our customers.”
Police and forensics teams attended the restaurant the following morning and Flynn was arrested.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel