Audacious Thieves carried out a double robbery in Blantyre on the same evening in January 1928.
Blantyre police struggled in their searching for the person, or persons, responsible for one of the most daring burglaries ever recorded in the district, which took place at a public house, the Livingstonia Vaults, at the junction of Forrest Street and Glasgow Road. The public house at the time belonged to John Forbes.
The pub was locked up at 10p.m., as usual by the woman who was in charge. Shortly after midnight, the woman was informed by the police that one of the sidedoors of the pub was open. On her early hours arrival back at the shop, she made an examination of the stock, and found that nine five-gill bottles of whisky had been removed.
The premises were again made secure eventually at 3 o’clock in the morning and both police AND the woman left for their own homes.
Four hours later, as the morning shift arrived, it was found that the same premises had been broken into a SECOND time, on this occasion the break of a large window, four feet above the level of Forrest Street. The second haul made away with ten bottles of whisky and a large number of screw top beer. It is thought that, in the first instance, the burglar must have concealed himself on a ledge actually within the premises, locking himself in before it closed.
From “Blantyre Explained” by Paul Veverka (c) 2016