‘Scum’ take £200 hospice money from Blackburn fundraiser (From Lancashire Telegraph)
When news happens, text LT and your photos and videos to 80360. Or contact us by email or phone.
‘Scum’ take £200 hospice money from Blackburn fundraiser
6:00pm Friday 17th August 2012 in News
By Jessica Cree, Education reporter
DEVASTATED James Monnery, left, and Pete Brennan, who run Tattoo Heaven
CHARITY thieves who stole around £200 from a collection box have been slammed by a Blackburn fundraiser.
James Monnery, who co-runs Tattoo Heaven, in New Chapel Street, had been raising money for children’s charity Derian House, but was ‘heartbroken’ to find a wad of cash had been taken.
The tattoo studio had organised several fundraising events, which had also included a two-day tattoo-a-thon, and the cash collected in the box was to be used to top-up the donation total.
Mr Monnery said he could not believe anybody would take money that was meant to help terminally ill children.
He said: “I feel sick to my stomach, I felt like crying when we found it had gone.
“The money was in a charity bottle that was in the studio, I went to empty it to put it in a secure bottle and there was a wad of notes gone. “It is absolutely unbelievable, especially considering the kind of charity it was for. It is for dying children and to support their families and I just cannot believe anybody would do this.
“I hope they can find it in their hearts to at least give the money back and find out what Derian House is all about.
“They have not stolen the money off me, they have stolen it from the children.”
Roya Khadem, fundraising co-ordinator for Derian House, said: “Unfortunately, no matter whether you are a charity or a business, people just don’t seem to care. It is a shame, but we don’t want James to feel guilty for this, it was not his fault.
“No matter how much he raises, it will all go to the hospice. For somebody that is doing a fundraising event off their own back and for this to happen is such a kick in the teeth for them. We are very grateful for the event he is doing.”
A spokesman for Lancashire Police said: “It has been reported to us and we are looking into it. Nobody has been arrested at this stage.”
Comments(10)
GIBUCK
says...
7:05pm Fri 17 Aug 12
Black Car Guy.
says...
9:00pm Fri 17 Aug 12
Black Car Guy.
says...
9:11pm Fri 17 Aug 12
Chris P Bacon
says...
9:30am Sat 18 Aug 12
Black Car Guy. wrote:Aye, and a week's holi..team-bonding safari in Africa with some really right-on Social Workers who will show compassion and understanding for the misguided action these young rogues were compelled to take.
They are not scum LET. They are pillars of the community and a social workers wet dream. I bet if the said scum get caught they will get sent on course and extra benefits.
Pass the tambourine would you, brother!
fabinribblevalley
says...
10:43am Sat 18 Aug 12
Chris P Bacon wrote:Perhaps a month in Afghanistan mine treading would serve the purpose
Black Car Guy. wrote:Aye, and a week's holi..team-bonding safari in Africa with some really right-on Social Workers who will show compassion and understanding for the misguided action these young rogues were compelled to take.
They are not scum LET. They are pillars of the community and a social workers wet dream. I bet if the said scum get caught they will get sent on course and extra benefits.
Pass the tambourine would you, brother!
sonia baker
says...
12:50pm Sat 18 Aug 12
Chris P Bacon
says...
6:59pm Sat 18 Aug 12
sonia baker wrote:It's all karma. What you put into this world comes back to you three-fold so if you give out grief, you'll get worse grief back but if you show compassion, someone will exploit your weakness and rob you mercilessly.
they are lower than a snakes belly, scum you can throw away this low life keeps coming back, lets hope that 1 day they never need to use this charity
My karma ran over my dogma, you know.
norah bhatty
says...
1:40pm Sun 19 Aug 12
Not any longer - any box left like this, are a golden opportunity for despicable people to take.
They don't care from whom they steal, so why not try and make it as hard as possible by securing the collecting boxes by whatever means.
Glued to the counter, screwed down on the counter, anything to make it as hard as possible for the deceitful to steal.
The public usually give generously to good causes, and it is not fair to them, for their money to be taken so easily.
Rover-The-Moon
says...
10:13am Wed 22 Aug 12
woolywords says...
6:53pm Fri 17 Aug 12
LT, am sorry that you are not allowed to say more that the term 'scum' to describe this act.
Anyone stealing from a charity should, in my opinion, be given an automatic jail term of at least 12 months, be named and shamed in the papers and made to repay twice the amount stolen.
What has been done is a mean and despicable act that deserves nothing but utter condemnation. To rob from a child is bad, to do so from a child in need is beyond contempt.
May your Gods forgive you, for I can never do that.