THIEVES have forced three safes from walls and stolen cash from the Salvation Army in Blackburn.

Officials from the Vicar Street charity are counting the cost of the damage when a front window was smashed between November 18 and 19 and Crime Scene Investigators were at the scene on Monday morning

Volunteer Dave Yates said it is the fourth time they have been broken into this year.

He said: “It is so demoralising as our collectors have been collecting in the town centre for our Christmas appeal and then someone comes and takes the money.

“The appeal is buying presents for deprived families.

“It is so upsetting that people are giving up their hard-earned cash for others for it to be stolen.

“It won’t stop us and we will carry on trying to get gifts for the kids.

“We had an alarm but the last time we got broken into they took it off the wall and we were just trying to get a new one fitted.

“It is even worse for us as we are trying to make other people’s lives easier.

“They are stealing from a business but they are taking from people who have nothing as that is where all the money goes.”

A Lancashire Police spokesman said: “Sometime between 12.30am in the morning of November 18 and 8am on November 19, somebody has smashed through a window and taken three safes from inside.

“We don’t have the value of how much has been stolen from the safes which were bolted onto the wall and they have been forced off.

“They were then thrown off a balcony and into the car park around the back of the building.

“It is under investigation and we are appealing for anyone with information to contact us quoting the log number of 198 of November 19.”