Diners make off without paying bill in Bourne

A waitress narrowly avoided being knocked down by thieves who made off without paying their bill.

Eight men racked up a bill of £190 at the newly opened China Hand on Monday evening before running off from the tapas bar.

One of the waitresses, who asked not to be named, chased after them and stood in front of the car to slow them down while colleagues tried to record the number plate.

Unfortunately the 60-year-old claims the men then drove at her and she was forced to get out of the way as they made their getaway.

Business owner Harry Peng said: “Those guys seemed to know what they were doing.

“The waitress asked them politely to pay after they ordered but they showed her a bundle of cash and told her they had money to pay when they were finished.

“She explained that you normally pay when you order at the bar and now regrets saying they could pay when they were all done.”

The men arrived at the bar in North Street at around 5pm and stayed for an hour before one of them asked for the bill. Mr Peng said the rest of the group then got up and ran from the premises.

As they left, one of the men pushed the waitress but she pursued them anyway.

Thankfully the waitress, who is Harry’s godmother, escaped with minor injuries and has been warned not to get involved if anything happens again.

Mr Peng said: “I’ve told her not to do it next time. Her life is far more important. These men just had no respect for us at all.”

The incident has been reported to Lincolnshire Police who will have access to the bar’s CCTV footage.

The men have been described as “quite muddy” and their car, thought to be a Mercedes, was also covered in mud which obscured the number plates.

Mr Peng, who only opened China Hand three weeks ago, said: “We thought we could turn this into a nice cosy place for people to come in Bourne.

“This has really annoyed me. We just want to make sure those men can’t do this to other establishments in the future. Nobody deserves such a horrific experience.”

Lincolnshire Police confirmed they received a report of eight men leaving the bar without paying at 6.10pm on Monday.

A spokesman said that in the process of leaving the premises, one of the men assaulted a woman by pushing her to the ground.

The men then left in a silver Mercedes Benz people carrier.

Police are appealing for anyone with information to call 101 quoting incident 400 of December 17.

Ironically a group of police officers had booked a table at the bar for Wednesday night.

Mr Peng added: “If only they had come two days later, they would never have got away with it!”