A brazen thief stole money from a hotel’s charity collection for potentially life-saving equipment while guests were being served their breakfast.
The audacious raid happened at the Mariner Hotel on Great Western Road in Aberdeen.
While others were being served breakfast, the thief broke the box placed on the bar and grabbed notes from it before making their getaway.
The hotel recently launched a campaign to buy a defibrillator for its guests and the residents who live nearby.
As well as buying the device, which would be stored at the hotel for community use, there was a drive to raise enough to provide training to staff on how to use it.
Running club the Fit Like Joggers had been tirelessly raising funds for the device and there was a collection box on the bar which had been generously filled.
A post on the hotel’s social media page read: “Absolutely disgusted and saddened to find that some lowlife would sneak into the bar whilst we were serving breakfasts, break open a charity box and steal over £100.”
Hotel owner Mike Edwards described the theft, which took place on Saturday morning, as “terrible”.
He said: “It was a real shame and everyone had been doing such a great job raising funds.
“It was opportunistic, someone just sneaked in when breakfast was being served and broke the box and stole the notes in it.
“The box was just a few days from being taken away so it’s a really sad end to what has been a fantastic campaign.”