A Nat Tale from Northhampton in the UK!
By Matt Blake
PUBLISHED: 07:00 EST, 2 October 2012 | UPDATED: 07:28 EST, 2 October 2012
A shop owner has described the hilarious moment thieves fled empty-handed when an employee hauled two stolen sofas out of their getaway van - after they forgot to close the doors.
Dramatic CCTV footage from a furniture showroom shows a pair of men brazenly loading two brown £400 settees into a white transit in broad daylight.
Seconds before the intruders sped off brave store manager Justin Hallett, 37, leapt through the open backdoors and snatched the sofas back.
Scroll down for hilarious video.
Brazen: Dramatic CCTV footage from a furniture showroom shows the thieves loading two brown £400 settees into a white transit in broad daylight
Store owner Mark Kypta, 42, said the footage he captured was like 'something out of a Benny Hill film'.
He said: 'We couldn’t believe their audacity of just coming round the back of the store at our busiest time and brazenly loading the van with our sofas.
'Our prices aren’t exactly high, so they must have been pretty desperate. Luckily Justin, not even thinking of his own safety, ran out and jumped into the back of the van and got the sofas back.
'I think he’s in line for a Christmas bonus now. He was pretty brave. The whole footage looks like it should have a Benny Hill soundtrack to it. It’s a bit bizarre.
'But on a serious note, we want these guys caught because we don’t want other businesses to be targeted.
Stupid: The 60-second clip shows two of the three-man gang jump out of a white van with its number plate hidden from view and load two sofas through the back door
Getaway: But the men see store manager Justin Hallett approaching they run to the driver's seat in a bid to escape
Oh dear: But they left the van's back doors open allowing Mr Hallett to drag the loot back into the car park
And another one: Mr Hallett drags the second sofa from the van with no thought for his own safety. His boss, Mark Kypta, said it was like a Benny hill movie
boss, Mark Kypta, said it was like a Benny hill movie
Safe and sound: Mr Hallett retrieves the last sofa before the raiders speed off
The Sofa King: Sofa King boss Mark Kypta who captured the CCTV sequence said his store manager Mr Hallett is in line for a healthy Christmas bonus for his bravery
'The barefaced cheek of these guys was just crazy - and it could have easily got a bit nasty.
'Luckily nobody was hurt and we kept our stock, but it could have quite easily have been a different story altogether.'
The 60-second clip shows two of the three-man gang jump out of a white van with its number plate hidden from view.
One strides into the store while his accomplice opens the doors on the back of the van before following him.
Seconds later, both men reappear carrying a large brown leather sofa which they bundle into the vehicle.
They then re-enter the shop and return to the van carrying a second three-seater which they shove into the van before attempting to escape - with Mr Hallett in hot pursuit.
The dramatic raid unfolded at the Sofa King furniture superstore near Northampton at 11.45am on Saturday.
Funny: Mr Kypta said the CCTV footage could be straight out of a skit by legendary comedian Benny Hill, pictured with his Angels
I ran it through the Benny Hillifier.
Much better.
Posted by: Miss Red | Monday, October 08, 2012 at 04:32 AM
WOO! My town! Also, a while back this store was being told it had to change it's name and slogan because people found it offensive. He refuses!
Sofa King Low!
Posted by: Kilbykins | Monday, October 08, 2012 at 05:11 AM
Good for the owner giving his worker a bonus. At Wal-mart they'd probably fire the guy.
Also, great name for the store. I know there was a comic act years ago which featured a store called Sofa King as an offshoot of the successful store Mattress King [they decided to expand their product line.]
Posted by: The Last Archimedean | Monday, October 08, 2012 at 06:58 AM
Awesome that the owner is REWARDING his badass employee for saving the store's merchandise! This is an employee who showed loyalty and bravery and definitely earned that bonus. Sucks to know that so many other stores would have fired the guy without so much as a thank you, but it's nice that this once it ended happily for everyone (except the crooks! >D)
Posted by: BookAce | Monday, October 08, 2012 at 10:56 AM
We should show this to managers of our corporate owned hellholes. THIS is how you treat an employee who saved your store from theft!
Posted by: NC Tony | Monday, October 08, 2012 at 01:25 PM
Funny, I was adding my OWN Benny Hill music in my head while I was watching this!
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Posted by: smithalice | Tuesday, March 12, 2013 at 10:14 PM