Thieves trying to steal 30 Christmas trees in the dead of night were foiled by security teams.
The would-be grinches were poised to strike at Pines and Needles' pop-up store in St Mark's Square, Prince Albert Road, near Regent’s Park, in the early hours of Tuesday morning (December 3).
Security teams patrolling the site foiled the attempted theft, recovering around 30 trees that have since been returned to the store.
The attempted theft comes four years after thieves stole £3,000 worth of trees from Pines and Needles’ Wimbledon branch on the evening it opened its doors for the first time under Covid-19 rules.
The company operates 40 outlets around London that open in the run-up to Christmas.
Known for its kilt-wearing staff, Pines and Needles has supplied the likes of Madonna and Sir Elton John as well as Royal residences.
Josh Lyle, founder of Pines and Needles, said: “We have been supplying Christmas trees to people in London for 30 years and it’s such a shame that things like this happen.
“When we had Christmas trees stolen in 2020 we were very disheartened. As a result, we have improved our security presence at all our stores.
“On this occasion, it allowed our security team, who monitor everything 24/7, to work with police to foil the theft.
“We’re also grateful to the local community for reporting these incidents.”
A spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Police Service said three people had been arrested in connection with the incident, but no charges had been brought.
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