The owner of a Ladywell café ransacked by burglars has praised the “amazing” community for its support.

Karine and Nadil Bengueloul, 43 and 49, were at the end of their summer holiday visiting family in Algeria when they found out Le Délice on … had been burgled.

According to Karine, who has owned the cafe for six years, a staff member called her on Saturday morning to tell her the windows of the café had been smashed overnight and £100 cash had been taken from the till.

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“I wonder what people like that are looking for – they must know we cash out at the end of the day. All they took was the till float,” she told News Shopper.

Despite the mess from broken plates and glass, staff at Le Délice were able to open up the shop on Saturday morning, taking card payments only.

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“The team dealt with it really well. They asked us what to do and called the police. We told them to run the business as if nothing had happened,” Karine said.

Despite the setback, Karine said the support she has received from the community had restored her faith in humanity.

“People have been amazing. Absolutely amazing. I am blown away.

“Everyone is so supportive and it shows people really do care. I’ve had so many kind words and thoughts.”

The business owner added she received messages of support after posting photos of the damage to Le Délice on social media to warn holiday-goers of burglaries in the area

“I really wasn’t expecting that response. Everyone got together and was sharing their thoughts and offering support.

“It makes you realise how brilliant the community is. When something like this happens you tend to think about the bad people involved but it just shows there are more good people than bad people,” Karine said.