A COUPLE whose Oxford shop has been repeatedly ransacked by thieves feel they have been 'abandoned' by police.

Frustration and fear is withering staff spirit at Old Man's Premier in Rose Hill, after the Premier Stores branch fell victim to three shoplifting offences in quick succession.

Bharat Dalal, who runs the corner shop with wife Anna Dalal, said the shop has been targeted by shoplifters for years, but that thieves have become more brazen and that the police now do little more than post out paperwork.

He said: "The worst part is my staff feel abandoned and don't feel supported.

"They are concerned that there is no help and are extremely worried.

"They are looking at the front door thinking 'is this person going to cause trouble?'"

The Kennington couple, who have run the Courtland Road shop for 16 years, claim police officers have not visited the shop since they reported the crimes weeks ago.

Mrs Dalal said: "We are getting very frustrated that nothing is being done. All they've done is send a form in the post to fill in.

"There is no follow-up and nothing else."

On November 1 two men escaped the shop laden with crates of stolen Stella Artois lager, worth at least £100.

Mr Dalal said in October a man and woman piled bags high with about £80 worth of detergent before walking out 'cool as a cucumber'.

The 60-year-old said he feared the same would happen when three rowdy youths began 'aggressively' throwing stock around the weekend before last, though they fled when he rang police.

His wife added that on Thursday a man walked out of the shop carrying cans of cider.

Mr Dalal said: "These things are going to happen and I can live with them.

"But it's so difficult when you get no support from the authority [police] that ought to be there.

"Police said not be afraid to continue coming into work, but there is this fear now that they are abandoning their responsibilities."

Mr Dalal has taken matters into his own hands, publishing CCTV footage online of the first theft, which happened at about 5.40pm on November 1.

It shows a man hauling boxes of the beer into carrier bags then walking to talk to staff at the till, before another man picks them up.

The first man lifts up another three crates and ambles out carrying them, while his accomplice takes the bags.

Neither appear to have made any attempt to be subtle about the operation.

Mr Dalal said: "People are getting the message that they can do whatever they want and they [police] will let them.

"There is no violence, no guns: they just walk in and take it.

"We've got to the stage where we've stopped calling the police for small incidents – there is no point."

James Williams, a spokesman for Thames Valley Police, said it would be 'inappropriate' to comment on a specific complaint.

He confirmed that businesses affected by shoplifting will usually be sent a pack to provide information such as CCTV evidence – unless the suspect is still in the store, in which case officers will be sent out.

Mr Williams said a recent trial of the shoplifting pack saw officers spend 75 per cent less time attending shoplifting incidents where the offender was no longer at the scene.

He added: "Officers will now use this saved time to liaise with businesses to provide crime prevention advice, so they can make their shops and premises more secure."