23 June 2024 , 21:46
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A stunned resident watched a brazen thief stealing a gazebo from a front garden before he ran off.
CCTV footage shows a man walking down the street in Gillingham, Kent. The man can be see entering the front garden and lifting the chained up awning - leaving one leg behind. Stuart Whibley, 50, noticed on Thursday that his gazebo was missing. When he checked his home CCTV, he was shocked to discover why it have vanished.
Stuart, from Gillingham, Kent, said: "It's a complete and utter nightmare. My wife and I were both inside the house on Wednesday when the it happened but neither of us heard anything. I just can't understand why someone wouldn't even knock on the door to ask if it was scrap or something."
The camera catches the man snatching the gazebo before running off (Stuart Whibley / SWNS)"They didn't even notice one of the legs was chained down, so they left without one of the legs. It can't even really be used like that" Stuart and his wife Sherry use the gazebo to host seasonal charity events to raise money for mental health charity Mind UK and Cancer Research.
The have run events for the past five years, but getting the 4x4 gazebo last year meant they could go the extra mile. They used the gazebo for two events - Halloween and Christmas - with the former bringing in £220 for Mind UK.
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Stuart said: "It's not going to be the same now we don't have the gazebo to extend the decorations out on to the pavement.
"For Halloween last year, we had a walkway which turned into a maze through the gazebo. My wife and I have both struggled with mental health issues, which is why it means so much for us to help out the charity like this.
"Without the gazebo, the events are going to have to be a lot smaller." Stuart has reported the incident to the police.