stolen bag News

Shooting Star Chase charity suffers second theft in less than a year


Shooting Star Chase, local children’s hospice charity,  suffered the devastating theft of a donated item worth £500 from their Guildford shop on July 30 2015. 

This is the second time items of high-value due to raise precious funds for sick children have been stolen from the charity in less than a year.

One of nine Shooting Star Chase charity shops, the Guildford branch in Tungsate received a donation of a mint-condition Mulberry bag and displayed the item in the far side of the shop window earlier this week. The bag, which retails at £895, was available to buy for £400 and the charity was due to receive a total of £500 including Gift Aid once the item was sold.

The Mulberry bag was last seen at 1.30pm on the day of the theft and noticed missing just 45 minutes later, and to add insult to injury a customer who had looked at the bag earlier that day returned after the shoplift hoping to buy the item. The incident follows a burglary in December 2014, where heartless thieves raided Shooting Star Chase’s storage unit just a few weeks before Christmas, pilfering bikes worth a total of £630.

Shooting Star Chase supports children and young people through their battle with serious illnesses. They provide hospice care supporting families and children, from diagnosis through to bereavement support. Shooting star chase offers practical, emotional, nursing and medical care in a caring and supportive environment.

Their hospices in Surrey and London are open 365 days a year and offer free support to families. They also work closely with the community to offer support to families.

It costs Shooting Star Chase a massive £9.5 million a year to maintain the current level of care for over 650 children and their families across Surrey and London, and the charity is reliant on supporter’s generosity to keep the desperately-needed service running. The missing Mulberry bag’s value of £500 could pay for two visits from a Hospice at Home nurse during an emergency or five bereaved parent’s groups, facilitated by Shooting Star Chase counsellors.

Denise Stenning, the Shooting Star Chase Guildford shop manager, said:

“It’s hard to believe someone would steal goods from a charity shop, let alone items of such significant value and from an organisation like Shooting Star Chase that cares for sick children with life-limiting conditions.

“A very kind supporter took the decision to raise precious funds for Shooting Star Chase by donating their Mulberry bag to the shop and we’re simply devastated about what’s happened. We only hope the thief has a change of heart and brings it back.”

If you can know anything about this theft or can help the police with their investigation please contact Surrey Police on 101 quoting reference 45150066753.  Alternatively information can be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

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