Thief strips roof lead at 1.30pm

It was just a typical day at work for Wolverhampton shopkeeper Baldeep Gabri until he was disturbed by a strange sound on the roof.

On going outside to investigate, the 58-year-old was stunned to discover a thief stripping away the lead from his store in broad daylight.

Mr Gabri, who has owned Penn Framing & Arts Materials on Penn Road for the past 25 years, said he was amazed by the audacity of the crook, who had neatly stacked the lead into piles ready to be bundled into a rucksack.

The shopkeeper, helped by a window fitter who had been working at the store, chased the culprit along Penn Road and into Coalway Road before he eventually gave them the slip.

Mr Gabri said today: “It was something I never dreamed would happen. To come face to face with a criminal in broad daylight, I just thought ‘good God’.

“When I was in the shop, I heard a bang and went outside to see what was going on. Outside, there was a lad tearing the lead up and putting it into piles. I shouted ‘What’s going on here?’ and he just replied ‘what’s it to do with you?’.”

The thief struck at around 1.30pm on Tuesday and Mr Gabri was able to keep all of the lead, although the attack did leave him with a repair bill running into hundreds of pounds.

“He had a bag full of lead and threw it down on to the chemist’s car park next door,” he said. “Then he jumped down and ran away. I called out ‘I’m calling the police’ and followed him in my van while the window fitter chased him on foot.

“Unfortunately he went into one of the side streets and we lost him.”

The attack has been reported to West Midlands Police. Anyone with information should contact officers on 0845 113 5000.