CROOKS smashed doors and shutters at an off licence store in an attempt to burgle the store.

A gang of men targeted Dhesi Supermarkets Ltd, Ballards Walk, Lee Chapel at around 12.55am on Wednesday July 4.

They smashed a window and shutters in the incident before leaving the scene.

Police were called and rushed to the scene.

CCTV images clearly show two men damaging the front shutter of the store.

Balbair Dhesi, director of business spoke of his anger following the incident.

He said: "There were men on motorbikes who came up to the business and broke the shutter from the outside and smashed the bottom glass part of the window. We also have a shutter inside the shop so they couldn't get into the shop. I got a call and we sent two shop representatives to the store.

"The men didn't get away with anything. We spent some of Wednesday with without glass in part of the door. There was obviously a lot of damage done to the door and shutter but we are still trying to find out how much it will cost to get it all fixed. It is just so disgusting. We are thankful that there was no one in the shop at the time of the incident. It is frustrating as we work so hard to get the business together and these people just come along and take it from you. We hope these people are caught and dealt with. We have CCTV which shows them and we also have a registration number for one of the motorbikes used in the incident."

He said it is quite frightening to think this is going on at his place of work. He also said that sadly this has become a bit of a regular occurrence in Basildon.

Residents took to Facebook to share their knowledge of the incident.

One woman said: "I live opposite. It sounded so aggressive, I mean the damage and the voices I heard. They got away so quick as they were on motorbikes. It wasn’t pleasant."

Another said: "It's terrible. My mum works there and was on a late shift on that night so I’m thankful she wasn’t there when it happened."

Officers are now appealing for information following the incident at the shop.

Anyone with information is asked to call Basildon police station on 101 quoting crime 42/94215/18 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111