Brighton charity shop owner's anger after series of thefts

Khadijah Kamara, who founded the charity Strive In the Way of Allah (SIWA) to raise money for people from Sierra Leone, expressed frustration after people have stolen items from her shop in Lewes Road, Brighton.

One incident saw a pram worth £100 stolen from the shop, the sale of which Khadijah claims would have helped feed ten orphans in the west African nation.

Khadija has felt like she has to take matters into her own hands to stop theft at her charity shop (Image: Andrew Gardner / The Argus)

She said: “Some of them come in and put something in a jacket - they’re stealing from me and I’ve had enough now.

“When they took that pushchair, that could have helped ten kids and I was really angry, not for me, but they are stealing from them.

“For someone to come to a charity shop, of all places, and do that, it has really hurt me.”

Khadijah has put up several posters in the windows of her charity shop to ward off any potential thieves.

The signs promise that any thieves will be punished and said they are being watched on camera.

Some of the signs read: “You are stealing from orphan children and those who have no source of income. They rely on this shop - what a sad life you choose to live.

“If you think you got away with it think again - you will lose more in life than you took from us.”

Khadijah put up a number of signs to ward off thieves (Image: Andrew Gardner / The Argus)

Khadijah previously spoke to The Argus after her son was killed by an air strike in Syria in 2014.

She said she had not contacted the authorities about the thefts because she does not trust them.

SIWA was created by Khadijah in 2011 with the aim of assisting people in need in Sierra Leone, her home country.

The charity has helped build a school and two mosques, install a hand water pump for a local community and also help feed the fasting during Ramadan.

In Brighton, SIWA helps homeless people and refugees in the city by giving them clothing when they are in need.