A Wokingham town centre shop window with a display marking Remembrance Day has been smashed in what Thames Valley Police have classed as criminal damage.
The window of Jay Printer in Denmark Street was attacked between 10.30pm on Friday, October 20, and early the following morning.
David Dunham, poppy appeal organiser for Wokingham, branded the mindless attack as vile and totally disrespectful.
He is sure whoever attempted to break the window was attempting to steal replica medals that are part of the display to mark this year’s appeal.
He said: “We have two medals on display. They are replicas of the Victoria Cross and the George Cross.
“Every one of the real medals have the name of who it was awarded to, so if they were real and had been stolen, the thief would have great difficulty trying to sell them.”
Keith Campbell, owner of Jay Printer, noticed the damage on Saturday morning while at the nearby dry cleaners.
He told Wokingham Today: “I looked at the shop and thought that doesn’t look right.”
He had been past his premises at 10.30pm on Friday evening, putting the incident sometime on Friday night or early Saturday morning.
“You can see whoever tried to break the window had put a lot of force into it, and I’d think they used a hammer judging from the cracks in the glass.”
Keith is in agreement with the motive of attempted theft.
He added: “Obviously you can’t totally rule out other motives with what’s happening elsewhere in the world, but I’m sure they were attempting to steal the medals.”
He is now faced with a hefty bill to replace his window, and although it will be covered by insurance, he will have to pay a large excess.
Keen to ensure he’s not left out of pocket, Dave has launched a fundraising page to cover any personal costs that Keith needs to pay.
Dave said: “Any surplus money that’s raised will be donated to the poppy appeal.
Despite the vandalism, Keith is not deterred from doing something similar in the future.
He said: “I will always support the poppy appeal, but this is really inconvenient and totally disrespectful.”
A spokesperson for Thames Valley Police told Wokingham Today: “On Saturday, October 20, we received reports of criminal damage in Demark Street, Wokingham.
“An investigation has been carried out and has since been filed pending further information coming to light.
“If anyone has any information they can call 101 quoting 43230473901.”
To contribute to the fundraising https://gofund.me/de1408a2,
The 2023 Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal will start in Wokingham on Saturday and run until the Remembrance Day parade on Sunday, November 12.
Poppies and other merchandise can be purchased at various locations in the town, including Tesco, Waitrose, the Nationwide Building Society, and Sainsbury in Winnersh.
A poppy stall will also be in Wokingham market every Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Poppies will also be available from shops and other places throughout the town.
A full list they will be available on www.wokinghampoppyappeal.com, and it will be updated throughout the appeal.
