Tucker Crossett, owner of Willie's Confectionery, says a seven-strong gang, including at least two pregnant women, robbed his shop a fortnight ago: "The whole thing might sound bizarre but it's ghastly for us, and the police are useless."

Crossett says seven Romanians, all with addresses in Dublin, are touring the Shankill in a five-door Ford Mondeo . . . two of them sitting in the hatchback boot. "They visit shop after shop. It's not like they're robbing big fancy city-centre stores like Marks and Spencers . . . they're thieving from wee family shops.

We're easy targets because we don't have all this hightech security. There's just a girl behind the counter in my shop. She has no chance when seven Romanians arrive in."

Crossett's shop sells icecream and old-fashioned boiled sweets. The Romanians visited a fortnight ago, he says: "They called the assistant to the fridge for help, then one of the women sneaked behind the counter.

My assistant told them to leave. They made a big fuss and started talking in their own language. The assistant later discovered the cash box, containing a large sum, was gone."

Crossett called the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). "They came out but didn't look for fingerprints or take a statement from my assistant. They're incompetent, so I did my own enquiries."

Crossett says he discovered three other local shops . . . VideoWorld, Milfords, and Davy's newsagents . . . had also been visited by the Romanians: "They used the same tactics: arrive en masse, confuse the assistant, cause a scene, then try to steal."

Crossett said he saw CCTV footage of the gang, enabling him to identify them. "Three nights after they robbed my place, I heard they were back on the Shankill. I was so pissed off, I got into the car and drove until I found them on the Crumlin Road.

"They started driving towards the motorway to Dublin. I rang the police and told them I was pursuing a car whose occupants robbed my shop. It was a high-speed chase until the police arrived, sirens blazing, and pulled the Romanians in near Banbridge."

Crossett alleges they had black bin-bags full of goods for which there were no receipts. "They all gave Dublin addresses. They were taken to Antrim Road PSNI station but were later released without charge because of apparent lack of evidence.

"If the police had looked for fingerprints in my shop they might have got somewhere. My assistant said she'd view an identity parade.

She was told an ID suite wouldn't be free for two months. The bin bags of goods were unreceipted but the cops couldn't trace what shops they were from."

Crossett is unimpressed with the PSNI. "I caught this gang, something the entire North Belfast PSNI couldn't do. I did 99% of the detective work and the police couldn't even close the case. They're more interested in handing out parking tickets than catching criminals.

"Supt Gary White has apologised for the mess and said if one of his officers had done the amount of work I'd done, he'd get a commendation." A PSNI spokeswoman said detectives were investigating a cash theft from a shop on the Shankill.

Two men were arrested in connection with the incident, following a report from a member of the public, but were later released unconditionally, she said. It is understood the Romanian women attended the PSNI station voluntarily, and there was insufficient evidence to prosecute the men.

Any complaints about police could be made to the Police Ombudsman, the spokeswoman said. Crossett says he's now constantly on his guard against robbers:

"All these tourists taking pictures of the Shankill murals are very welcome but they give foreign criminal gangs cover. I'd like to think Dublin would extradite these Romanians. But they've never extradited murderers, so why would they extradite robbers?"