A gift shop owner has been left hundreds of pounds out of pocket after a vandal damaged a window at his premises.
In the early hours of Sunday, August 1, a man was seen arguing with a woman outside Souvenirs upon Tyne, on Dean Street, in Newcastle.
He punched and kicked the window, and a result, a large pane of glass was damaged and needs replacing.
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Owner Sean Gerrie says the "mindless" vandalism has left him feeling frustrated, especially as the business is trying to recover from the pandemic.
This is the second time the shop, which sells Geordie gifts and cards, has been targeted by vandals. In January last year, a window was damaged at the site, costing around £400 to repair.
This time, the replacement is likely to cost at least £500.
Mr Gerrie, 37, who has been running the store for three years, said: "We were looking forward to the summer and had a canny weekend's trade. Things were looking up.
"But this damage is going to wipe out our weekend's proceeds. It's extremely frustrating for us and not the best start to the summer."
Mr Gerrie, of Blaydon, has called on the police to increase patrols in the area, especially during busy weekends and because the shop is close to late-night bars.
He added: "This has set us back a bit but I want to remain positive and I hope the police are able to find the culprit."
A Northumbria Police spokesperson said: "We can confirm we received a report of criminal damage whereby a male broke a window at The Souvenirs upon Tyne shop on Dean Street shortly before 1.50am on Sunday.
"We appreciate incidents such as this are incredibly frustrating for shop owners and enquires are on-going to trace the male.
"We want to reassure the community that following the easing of restrictions and return of night-time economy, we have increased our presence in Newcastle’s city centre with both uniformed and plain-clothed officers conducting regular patrols.
"We ask anyone who witnessed the incident or has information or additional CCTV, to please contact police via the ‘Tell us Something’ function of the website and quote NP-20210802-1057."
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