A local restaurant has expressed their gratitude for their neighbours after they were the victims of another ‘heartbreaking’ burglary.
Sweet Mandarin in the Northern Quarter was broken in to in the early hours of Friday morning by two burglars, who made off with the restaurant’s till.
But the restaurant’s neighbours and customers rallied around, and found the smashed-up till in a nearby flowerbed – along with evidence that will hopefully help police to trace down the criminals behind the break-in.
The Chinese restaurant, which has been operating in the city centre for almost two decades, said that the kindness of customers and fellow business has ‘spurred them on’ through a ‘helpless’ time.
They initially shared CCTV footage of the burglary itself, which shows two men deftly removing a window and climbing inside to steal the till.
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Sweet Mandarin wrote that the pair rode up on bicycles and appealed for people to share any information they may have to their identities.
They posted: “This is not a faceless crime. We are a family business serving the local community. We have huge bills to pay as its month end. They just took the till and its heart breaking. It is time to stand up to these perpetrators. Please share names with us privately.
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“Trying to keep our heads up. We remain open today come what may! Sorry about the door!”
Since sharing the footage, hair salon RCNQ (one of Sweet Mandarin’s neighbouring businesses) tracked down the till to a patch of flowers nearby.
The restaurant updated followers to say thank you, writing: “May we just pause from this crazy day to say a massive thanks for the love and kind messages which have spurred us on.
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“Seeing some of you tonight made me forget the pain of being broken into again and again. I feel so helpless and not quite hopeless but it’s harder every time to turn on the woks when something like this happens.”
They added that police had not found any prints on the till, but that officers did find a glove and footprints elsewhere, which are being examined.
Sweet Mandarin’s post continued: “I just wanted to say thank you very much to you all for your messages. It has given me heart to continue.
“We’ve been going for 20 years even before the @nqmanchester became a thing. Perhaps we may continue another 20 years more.
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“The verse which has struck me is John 10:10-15 ‘The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep….. ‘ wow powerful words.
“Here’s to keeping positive, silver linings and knowing the voice which leads my heart.”
Co-op Live confirms cancellations caused by part of air conditioning unit ‘falling from ceiling’
Daisy Jackson
The Co-op Live arena has confirmed the cause of tonight’s last-minute gig cancellation and subsequent postponement of future shows.
Reports said that an object had ‘fallen from the ceiling’ before doors to the public officially opened.
Co-op Live has now confirmed that ‘a component of the air conditioning system’ separated from the ductwork, and stressed that no one was injured.
A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, the artist who was meant to perform tonight, had said that ‘something happened with the venue while I was at soundcheck today’.
Oak View Group, which owns the venue, said that it had ‘made the necessary call to ensure the full safety of all visitors to the venue to postpone the performance’.
Tim Leiweke, Chairman and CEO of Oak View Group said: “The safety and security of all visiting and working on Co-op Live is our utmost priority, and we could not and will not run any event until it is absolutely safe to do so.
“Today was a very unexpected situation but without a doubt the right decision.
“I deeply apologise for the impact that this has had on ticket holders and fans.”
It’s believed that the issue with the HVAC system was an isolated incident ’caused by a factory defect’.
Co-op Live said: “We were not able to verify that all similar nozzles were free of such defects.
“In conjunction with wider stakeholders, Oak View Group has made the necessary call to ensure the full safety of all visitors to the venue, and to postpone the performance.”
The rest of the nozzles inside the huge arena will now be tested for similar defects.
They said in a statement: “We understand the need to reassure fans over future shows. We are working with artist management and promoters to limit the impact on the opening season schedule.
“Where necessary, we will identify alternate dates, and will continually reassess to provide fans with sufficient notice regarding imminent shows.
“Should shows be cancelled or rescheduled, fans will be contacted by their point of purchase and offered a full refund where preferred.”
Olivia Rodrigo’s two Manchester shows at Co-op Live have been postponed
Daisy Jackson
Olivia Rodrigo’s shows at Co-op Live in Manchester have been postponed after a night of drama for the new arena.
The star was meant to bring her GUTS Tour to the city on Friday and Saturday night.
But the huge 23,500-capacity arena has now confirmed that both of these gigs will be postponed.
New dates will be announced as soon as they’re confirmed.
Co-op Live said in a statement: “Due to an on-going venue-related technical issue, the scheduled performances of Olivia Rodrigo’s GUTS World Tour on 3rd and 4th May are being postponed.
“Ticket holders can either hold onto their tickets or obtain a refund from their point of purchase.
“We deeply apologise for the significant inconvenience this will cause for many.”
The massive arena was supposed to open for the first time to the public tonight with a performance by A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie.
But it was called off at the eleventh hour, with fans turned away from the doors just minutes before they were meant to open.
Co-op Live has now confirmed that the reason for the cancellation was that a piece of the HVAC (air conditioning) system had ‘separated from the ductwork’.
Rigorous testing on the rest of the system now needs to take place before fans can safely be welcomed inside.
Olivia Rodrigo has yet to issue a statement about her Manchester shows on 3 and 4 May being postponed.