Ram raid at Livingston shopping centre as police hunt four suspects
Police in Livingston are asking for help after a ram raid at Almondvale Shopping Centre in the early hours of this morning.
It happened at around 12.15am on Tuesday, when a black Nissan Juke and a white Audi S5 pulled up at the east side of the centre.
Four men got out and smashed an external display window, but couldn’t get into the main store at first. One of them then got back into the Nissan and drove it through a bollard and straight into the entrance, smashing through two sets of glass doors.
Once inside, the group targeted a shop and grabbed several rails of designer clothing, loading them into the Audi before making their escape.
A short time later, the Nissan was set on fire. The suspects then drove off in the Audi at speed, heading along a pathway before joining Almondvale Road eastbound.
Emergency services were called to the scene, and the fire was put out, but the Nissan was completely destroyed. The Audi has since been found near Dechmont, along with some of the stolen items, but the four men are still on the run.
Detective Inspector Lee Beaumont says thankfully no one was hurt, but described the raid as a carefully planned operation, adding the group showed no regard for public safety.
Police say enquiries are ongoing and they’re urging anyone who saw the vehicles in the area, or who may have dashcam or CCTV footage, to get in touch.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101, quoting incident number 0052 of 17 March. Anonymous reports can also be made to Crimestoppers.