'They knew what they were doing and they came with angle grinders' - Musselburgh hit by 'five-figure' burglary

Musselburgh has been left reeling after a targeted break-in by thieves wielding angle grinders. The course lost gardening equipment worth "a five-figure sum."

The burglary came as the track was battling a spate of vandalism, which it reckons has cost it around £30,000 this year.

Recounting the latest incident, general manager Bill Farnsworth said: "We got broken into after racing on Wednesday night, over at the grounds team's workshop, and they knew what they were doing, they came with angle grinders and got into our containers.

"They stole all our gardening equipment — hedge clippers, lawn mowers, strimmers and the like. We need to replace it pretty quickly and it will cost a five-figure sum."

Musselburgh's general manager Bill FarnsworthCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

The course is in the heart of the Scottish seaside town of Musselburgh, near Edinburgh, and has been particularly susceptible to vandalism in 2024.

"It's pretty frustrating and very expensive," Farnsworth said. "We've been hit about a dozen times this year. It's a pretty regular occurrence. The grandstand gets smashed up and we have to get the joiners and the glaziers out.

"It's gangs of youths, teenagers basically. On occasions in the past they've managed to steal some alcohol but that's now all taken away and locked up. They still come back probably thinking they'll nick some booze and don't seem to have learned yet.

"The alarms go off as soon as they break a window and the police are here within minutes but it's all probably a bit of a game to the kids involved."

Security has been strengthened and Musselburgh is working closely with the police to try to combat the issue.

"We keep putting more bars and padlocks on things and we move equipment around but we've just got to deal with it and move on," Farnsworth said. "It's a societal problem, the police know there's little they can really do."

The next meeting at Musselburgh, a dual-purpose course that races throughout the year, is a Flat card on Monday week.

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