Thieves rampage through leisure centre (From Daily Echo)

Bitterne Leisure Centre hit by thieves

8:33am Thursday 28th May 2009 in News By Corey Stephenson, Senior News and Video Reporter

Thieves rampage through leisure centre

A SOUTHAMPTON leisure centre was forced to close when thieves left a trail of destruction behind after stealing a safe thought to contain thousands of pounds.

Burglars forced their way through a rooftop window at Bitterne Leisure Centre before smashing doors and vending machines and searching offices.

The thieves dragged a safe out of the reception area of the council-run facility in Dean Road before removing it from the centre via a fire exit.

Police were alerted by staff who discovered the devastation when they returned to work on Tuesday morning.

A police spokeswoman said: “The burglars have caused a lot of damage, including breaking a lot of windows.

“It appears they have taken a safe from the building which had a substantial amount of money inside.”

Members at the centre, which has been open for 20 years, were yesterday welcomed back to the centre with free entry for the day.

Sports and recreation manager Jayne Ludden said: “We are working closely with the police. No one was hurt but we were forced to close the centre. We reopened at 11am yesterday and offered free entry to our customers due to the inconvenience caused.

“We would urge anyone who knows anything about this incident to contact the police immediately.”

A Southampton council spokesman confirmed that the building is covered by CCTV cameras and an alarm system. However, the alarm did not alert police to the raid, which is believed to have happened overnight on Monday or early on Tuesday.

Anyone with information should contact Acting Sergeant Gassan Shaladan at Bitterne police station on 0845 045 4545 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.