Businessman, 33, is left ‘fuming’ after NHS well-wishers paint over his £400 advertising board to say ‘thank you’ to medics fighting coronavirus
- Christopher Walker was ‘fuming’ after ‘NHS Thank you’ was put on £400 board
- The 33-year-old bought the sign in Redcar, North Yorkshire, to boost business
- The father-of-three from Redcar slammed the ‘mindless’ violence to his property
- Learn more about how to help people impacted by COVID
A self-employed businessman has been left furious after well-wishers painted over his advertisement with a message of support for the NHS.
Christopher Walker was ‘fuming’ after his £400 board was emblazoned with ‘NHS Thank you’.
The 33-year-old, who has owned AA Security Electrical for 14 years, bought the sign in Redcar, North Yorkshire, last year to boost business but is now out of pocket.
Christopher Walker was ‘fuming’ after his £400 board was emblazoned with the message ‘NHS Thank you’ (pictured)
The father-of-three, who is from the town, is out of work due to the pandemic and slammed the ‘mindless’ violence to his property on April 5.
Mr Walker said: ‘My partner, who is a police officer, was dropping her colleague off when she noticed the board.
The 33-year-old, who has owned AA Security Electrical for 14 years, bought the sign in Redcar, North Yorkshire, last year to boost business but has been left out of pocket
‘She called me, she was laughing and said ”you won’t believe it, someone has put a sheet over your sign” but then she realised it had all been painted.
‘It was just all covered when I went the next morning, every inch of it. I was fuming, the sign alone, just the sign alone was £250, the timber work and work itself set me back around £400.
‘I will have to take it off and re-do it, work has stopped for me, apart from the odd call out that I can do if it is safe and out of the way, work has stopped.
‘In times when things are already tough enough for the self employed, this happens. I appreciate the sentiment, but why cause criminal damage to my property to do so? What makes that acceptable?
‘We have just moved house as well, we had to moved in before the lock down as we had a tenant to move into ours and no work and two mortgages, the financial impact was spiralling.
‘I am just angry over the fact someone else doing a good gesture out weighs destroying someone else’s property.
‘At the end of the day it is criminal damage, if it had been a sheet, I would have still been annoyed but if someone had said I wondered if I could hang this sign for a week or so I would have said yes.
The father-of-three, who is from the town, is currently out of work due to the pandemic and slammed the ‘mindless’ violence to his property (pictured, the sign before it was hijacked)
‘It is the fact someone thinks it is totally OK, you wouldn’t do it to somebody’s house, car or caravan, you just wouldn’t do it.’
A spokesman for Cleveland Police said: ‘The damage to the sign was reported on Sunday 5th April but the damage could have taken place the previous evening.
‘The matter has been logged as a crime and enquiries are ongoing.’