​Unusual break in sees thief promise to return cash

Police are looking for a thief with a heart after a charity shop was broken into and a safe was stolen.

Staff at the British Heart Foundation shop in Brighton discovered a message written on a box saying "IOU anything I took and am really sorry."

The thief had drawn a dial with numbers on the box in a half-hearted attempt to resemble a safe alongside the unusual message.

Staff later discovered the shop’s safe was missing though they did not disclose how much cash it contained.

The thief or thieves struck some time between 6.15pm on Friday and 7.45am on Saturday when the shop manager came in and discovered the safe had gone.

It is thought the intruder may have climbed up scaffolding on an adjacent building before using a flat roof to reach and smash a sash window to gain entry.

PC Lucy Goering, of the Brighton Neighbourhood Response Team, said: "This was an unusual burglary in that the offender left an apologetic note.

"But this was nevertheless a significant loss for the charity concerned and we still need to trace the person responsible."