Shocking CCTV footage shows three ‘brazen’ thieves using cable cutters to steal £1,500 worth of power tools from a 112-year-old family business.<br /><br />The middle-aged suspects broke through chains at Mackays of Cambridge and stuffed six pieces of the expensive equipment into their coats before walking away.<br /><br />They seemed completely undeterred by the 35 CCTV cameras in the store - and one of the men even looked straight into a lens before taking part in the theft.<br /><br />Neil Mackay, 68, co-owner of the business, has shared the footage in the hope of shaming the men, who broke into his shop on March 1.<br /><br />He said: “It’s absolutely horrifying when you see how brazen they were. <br /><br />“They clearly came in with a shopping list, and they knew exactly what tools they were aiming for – they went for the top brands.<br /><br />“We had everything cabled down, chained down, so these guys came in armed with cutters. <br /><br />"My colleagues were all occupied serving customers elsewhere in the shop, leaving this particular area open and vulnerable."<br /><br />“They looked straight up into the camera. They clearly knew there was CCTV footage - whether they thought they were dummy cameras, I don’t know."<br /><br />Campaigner Neil, whose family has owned the 10,000-square-foot premises since 1912, has spoken to politicians for over a decade about rising thefts in shops.<br /><br />He said the issue was only getting worse - with businesses not bothering to declare each instance due to how numerous they had become.<br /><br />He said: “A lot of people have given up, and they are just leaning back and thinking of England and slowly but surely, their businesses are being wrecked. <br /><br />“If people get away with this, they feel emboldened, and that leads them to make more serious crimes – they get led down a particular path.”<br /><br />Neil, who employs around 20 people at his store, said he felt the term ‘shoplifting’ demeaned the crime and made it seem less serious.<br /><br />And he said that using the term ‘shop theft’ would help the public see just how devastating this issue can be for those running businesses. <br /><br />He added: “I have been campaigning for nearly 15 years to get ‘shoplifting’ changed from the lexicon. <br /><br />"It makes it seem like a lesser crime. I think it should be called ‘theft’ or ‘shop theft’.<br /><br />“Somehow we have to change society’s opinion about what shop theft is. It’s got to be regarded as the lowest of the low.”<br /><br />Cambridgeshire Constabulary said detectives were probing the thefts.<br /><br />A spokesman for the force said: “An investigation has been launched and anyone with any information is urged to contact us.<br /><br />“We’re working with retailers and organisations concerning shoplifting, and seeking prosecutions where we can. We will investigate all lines of enquiry."<br /><br />Neil once helped to jail a man dubbed ‘Britain’s dumbest shoplifter’ after he complained to police about a CCTV still photo circulating of him from his store.<br /><br />Nicholas Allegretto was captured on film stealing an industrial magnet from Mackays of Cambridge in February 2015.
