Callous thieves ransacked four businesses in Halstead in one night, sending shockwaves through a community.

The mini crimewave saw three hairdressers – Faith Hair and Beauty, in High Street, Feathers and Krazy Kutz, both in Bridge Street – targeted overnight on Saturday, November 22.

Halstead Snooker Centre, on Bluebridge Industrial Estate, was also broken into.

Tara Mizon, who has owned the club with her husband, Andrew, for 16 years, said it had left them “heartbroken”.

“It was a smash and grab,” she said.

“They smashed the front door with a rock and made an enormous mess.

“He must have been strong as the rock smashed the front door, dented the second door and ripped the carpet.

“They took the till which had about £50 float money in it, but they caused a couple of thousand pounds in damage.

“It could have been a lot worse. No one got hurt and it was only £50.

“It’s a lot of damage and it was heartbreaking to see it.”

Michael Garlick, who has owned Faith Hair and Beauty for a year and a half, said luckily the thieves had not stolen anything.

“They have smashed the glass through,” he said.

“They walked in and walked out again – as far as we are aware, they didn’t take anything.

“We had left the till open and empty.

“The thieves had gone through every door in the salon.

“The police think they were looking for cash and apparently there were five or six incidents on the same night.

“It’s just one of those things.

“We’ve never had any trouble before and I am not worried about it.

“If it happened again then I might think that we were being targeted and then I would be worried.

“But this is just someone, somewhere who has decided there were going to try and get some Christmas money.

“I just hope the police find them.”

Mr Garlick, who runs the salon with his wife, Lisa, has already fixed the glass in the window and said it will be “business as usual”.

Mrs Garlick added: “I don’t understand the logic.

“Some salons do stock items to retail and I suppose these do make good Christmas presents, but I don’t know what they were after.

“It’s worrying that so many were targeted in one go – it was a bit of a spate.”

Police believe the incidents are linked and ask anyone with information to call Essex Police on 101.