Brazen thief hits Masterton workers

SHOCKED: Saj Kaintura (left), Spices of India owner, and Mandeep Shandhu, duty manager, couldn't believe the brazen actions of a young girl who walked in and snatched the tip jar, which held about $200. PHOTO/LYNDA FERINGA

Security-camera footage of incident has been put up on Facebook

A teenage girl laughed as she waltzed into Masterton's Spices of India restaurant, casually picked up the staff tip jar with more than $200 in it and ran off through Queen Elizabeth Park chased by the manager.

The next day, the same girl walked into the Curry Twist Indian restaurant in Kuripuni and ran off with the staff tip jar which had about $30 in it, while a customer yelled out to alert staff in the kitchen.

Money in both jars was being saved up at the request of staff so they could have it for Christmas - they have been left heartbroken.

The owner of both establishments, Saj Kaintura, said it was shocking because the girl who stole the first jar on Tuesday about 8.15pm, and from the Kuripuni restaurant, was only a teenager.

"She just ran in and ran off. My manager wasn't able to catch her. She ran through the library and through the park," he said.

The duty manager at the time, Mandeep Shandhu, said he thought it was a joke at first because the young woman laughed loudly when she walked into the restaurant and as she ran off with a friend who had waited outside.

"She was laughing and said 'thank you' as she came in, grabbed the jar and ran out. I thought she was just kidding. I didn't expect that from a kid."

After viewing the security footage the next day, Mr Kaintura sent the clip to the Times-Age. The footage was put on Facebook. So far nearly 12,000 people have viewed it with some leaving suggestions about the thief's possible identity.

The thefts were brazen as there were customers in the restaurants at the time of both thefts, Mr Kaintura said.

"We had customers both times. It's very scary. She didn't care who saw her. One customer was yelling to staff the jar had been stolen."

Schoolgirls he employed had recognised the thief, with information from other sources also passed to the police.

Mr Kaintura said six months ago someone smashed the Kuripuni restaurant's window and stole more than $600 worth of alcohol, and recently someone took the outdoor sign, worth close to $300, and menu holders.

The thefts were making it difficult to survive as a business in Masterton as he couldn't claim insurance for anything under $1000 because of the excess, he said.

"It's very annoying. It's very worrying for a small business. In a place like this there is heaps of competition.

"This has just made it tougher ... we have such nice customers. Local people are very supportive of us."

He felt for his staff who had lost tips for their hard work and who were now fearful at work.

"They are hiding their cellphones and emptying the tip jar. They are scared of being robbed now. I feel so sad for them. I've promised them I'm going to get them something for Christmas."

Meanwhile, Masterton police Senior Sergeant Peter Rix said police had received a complaint and were investigating. They were following a positive line of inquiry about the two thefts this week.

"There are suspects that have been identified," he said.