VANDALS attacked a family-run newsagent two weeks in a row and threw magazines in the street and into people’s gardens.
Khanak Patel, who runs Court Candy in Woodstock Road, said the vandals were caught on CCTV and has reported the incidents to the police.
One attack took place during the early hours of Sunday, November 1, while the second incident happened on Saturday.
On both occasions, bundles of magazines which had been delivered to the front of the store were picked up and thrown in the road and in neighbouring gardens.
Court Candy in Woodstock Road
Ms Patel, 25, who also works as a hospital doctor in Bath, said: “I had to go around picking up the magazines where they had been thrown in the road and in people’s gardens, right the way up to Leckford Road.
“It’s totally mindless vandalism - we can see the people who we think are responsible on our CCTV and have reported this to police.
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“Police advised us to get a locked box outside the store but I don’t think that will be possible because the building is Grade II listed and there could be conditions in our lease preventing that.
“Whoever did this please don’t come back and do it again - it just makes our lives much harder.”
Two people are seen on CCTV
Ms Patel said a large number of newspapers on both weekends could not be sold because the magazines which should have been inserted had been damaged.
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She added: “This has been a family-run business for about 20 years and we do everything we can to support the community.
“We have always delivered but we have done extra deliveries since the first lockdown - we go all the way out to Elsfield and Woodeaton and there are lots of bulk orders for items like toilet rolls from people who are self-isolating because of the virus - they can’t get out themselves so they rely on us.”
Khanak Patel
Ms Patel said the store did not initially charge for deliveries when the first lockdown was introduced in March and brought in a delivery charge of 50p a day from July.
She added: “There has been a huge influx of new customers.”
Court Candy is situated in a row of shops called Belsyre Court and Mr Patel said landlords were St John’s College.
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She added: “We would need a large metal box for all the magazines but I don’t know if the lease would allow it.
“I have to get the shop ready each day before driving to the Royal United Hospital in Bath - we could do without this trouble.”
Ms Patel added that the store was broken into three times several years ago and stock was stolen but the thieves were not caught, despite a police investigation.
One customer said: “The shop owners, the Patel family, are well respected and work extremely long hours.
The dumped magazines
"When Mr Patel was taken ill last year, his daughter took over running the shop while continuing her studies.
"She often works a night shift at the hospital before arriving at the shop to deliver newspapers in the very early hours of the morning.
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"Since the pandemic she has also served housebound customers by delivering groceries.”
Thames Valley Police has been contacted for comment.
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