THIS is the moment a burglar was caught on CCTV forcing his way through a ceiling into a restaurant.

The thief raided dual venue Eddie’s Wood Fired Pizza and Sunbird Records in Darwen shortly after 5.30am yesterday.

Staff at the restaurant said the thief managed to escape with only £43 from the till but had caused £1,500 of damage.

In the footage the thief can be seen kicking his way through the ceiling tiles, before dangling his legs through the gap and jumping inside.

After grabbing his loot, the thief then escaped through the rear door after being startled by a decorator.

Despite the set back, the venue bosses said they would not let the raid prevent them from opening last night or over the upcoming Bank Holiday weekend.

Community leaders and neighbouring business owners described the raid as ‘disgusting’ and called for more CCTV cameras in the area.

Marco Mughal, manager at Eddie’s Wood Fired Pizza, said: “At 6.15am the painter rang me and told me somebody had broken in.

“When she told me about the damaged ceiling I was very worried about my oven.

“The thief caused around £1,000 to £2,000 in damage.

“It’s the second time in six months it has happened here, but it’s quite strange because Darwen is quite a peaceful place and for someone to come in here and make this mess is shocking.

“We will reopen as soon as the police finish their investigation.”

Jonathan Lindley, director of the adjoining Sunbird Records, said: “We got off pretty lightly.

“If the decorator hadn’t come in we might have been in trouble.

“It’s bad timing with Bank Holiday weekend coming up as it’s becoming a busy time for us.

“This was the last day of our renovation so we were hoping to open with a bang this weekend.

“We have done as much as we can to keep the thieves out but no one would have expected they would break in through the roof.”

The former bank building, in The Circus, was undergoing a refurbishment to create a 60-seat diner marking the joining of the two businesses.

Shaz Fani, the owner of the building, said: “This is the fourth time this year someone has broken in.

“We have spent over £4,000 on security including shutters on the two rear doors and installed a number of CCTV cameras.

“We now end up spending £1,500 for someone stealing £43.

“There is really no point in thieves breaking into these establishments because we hold nothing of real value overnight.”

Police urged anyone with information about the burglary to contact them.

Shelly Brogan, manager of neighbouring Shelly’s Fresh Farm Produce, said: “It’s a bit of a shock because this bit of the area isn’t usually targeted.

“There should be more security cameras on the centre itself because there are more nightclubs opening up and there can be more trouble at night.”

Pamela Hacking, owner of Pamela’s Cafe, said: “I think it’s disgusting. I don’t think there’s enough security around this town.

“I have been here nine years, struggling on, and over the last 12 months the decline I have seen in this town is not nice.

“When we open up on a Monday morning the street is full of sick, beer bottles and cans.”

Darwen cllr Roy Davies said: “We should not have to expect this when we are trying to run a business.

“We want Darwen to be a thriving town and this is the kind of thing that deters people coming here.”

Sgt Shaun Pearson said: “I would like to reassure the retail community that at the moment retail burglaries in Darwen are quite low.

“I would like to remind people not to leave anything on display on a counter or anything that looks of value such as cash boxes.

“If people do have CCTV please ensure they are working.

“Anyone with information should call 101.”