A BUILDER has slammed crooks who stole thousands of pounds of tools from his van in an earlymorning raid in Walton.

Mark Wilby, 49, of Field Walk, discovered his van had been broken into as he started to make his way to work.

As he tried to pull away from his drive the back door slid open, following which he found tools valued at more than £3,000 had been stolen.

Mr Wilby has CCTV cameras set up outside his home and the footage showed two men breaking into the van.

The incident happened at 3.55am on April 15.

The crooks fled with a haul that included power drills and nail guns, worth more than £3,000.

Mr Wilby said: “They stole my livelihood. It has hit me very hard."

A locksmith examined the van and told Mr Wilby the thieves had used a tool that decodes the lock.

The CCTV footage has been handed over to the police. Anyone who is offered cheap tools or can identify the suspects should call police on 101.

Read the full story in the Frinton & Walton Gazette, out now.