Dine and dash couple hit my pizzeria, says owner

Restaurant owner Emily Langford said the theft was particularly upsetting after a "rocky" few years for the hospitality industry

A couple who dined and dashed at five restaurants could have been stopped earlier, according to a "heartbroken" restaurant owner.

When Emily Langford read about Bernard and Ann McDonagh pleading guilty to stealing more than £1,000 of food and drink, it made her blood boil.

Her own family-run business in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan, lost more than £150 when a group of diners left without paying the bill, weeks before the fraudster couple targeted Bella Ciao in Swansea.

South Wales Police said it had linked the thefts and was investigating after Ann McDonagh was identified on CCTV footage outside Emily's restaurant, while BBC Wales has approached the McDonaghs for a response.

On a quiet Tuesday evening in March, Emily and her parents were pleased to accommodate a table for five at their family-run pizzeria The Yard.

The diners, who also had a baby with them, tucked into prawn and salmon starters, followed by lasagnes and pizzas, washed down with bottles of soft drinks.

"We checked everything was OK, they said everything was lovely," said Emily.

After about an hour, Emily said the men and children got up from the table, thanked them and headed towards the exit while the woman asked if she could pay at the bar.

"She was buttering me and my mum up, saying that we looked like sisters, very pretty, blah, blah, blah."

The woman also asked them why it was so quiet and Emily said she told her "we were all really struggling".

Bernard and Ann McDonagh ran up a £329 bill at Swansea's Bella Ciao before leaving without paying

The woman tried to pay the £151 bill with her card. It was declined twice so she asked where the nearest cash point was.

Emily said: "We took her outside and showed her – it was literally two doors down.

"I watched her go to the cashpoint, popped my head back in for one second, looked back out and she’d gone."

After seven years in business, Emily said it was "the first and only time" the family had experienced a dine and dash.

"It’s a small town here and we do know pretty much all our customers that come in.

"We’re very trusting here and never thought that anything like that would happen but it has happened."

Emily and her family are proud of the business, not only for their food but how it brings people together.

"You do it because you love it and are passionate about it, good food and a nice atmosphere for people.

"We’ve created a community here... they’ve become part of our little family."

Experiencing a dine and dash and seeing others being targeted was "hard to swallow" for the family.

Bernard and Ann McDonagh hid their faces from the waiting media at their court case

It was especially "heartbreaking" after a "rocky" few years for the hospitality industry, including the pandemic, followed by the cost-of-living crisis.

"We’re a small, family-run independent business. It’s like taking food off our table," she said.

"You just don’t think anybody would have the heart to do that, after everything we’ve all been through and everybody knows that hospitality is really struggling."

On hearing about the McDonaghs' crimes, she added: "How did they have the conscience to go round and just do it again and again?

"Luckily not now, because they have been caught."

South Wales Police said: "When this offence was first reported the suspects were unknown.

"It was only after the later incident and subsequent coverage and more details of the suspects became known were officers able to link the two events.

"The Cowbridge incident is now subject to an ongoing investigation."