I HAVE known Alex Dobbing of D&H Jewellers in Darlington’s Queen Street Arcade for a number of years and regularly call in for a chat and a coffee.

On one occasion I popped in shortly after armed raiders had ransacked his shop, terrifying his loyal staff.

Alex is a hard-working man and has been a good friend to many over the years. I’ve even seen him sending cups of tea and a seat to elderly infirm passers-by.

I wonder how many other businesses could withstand the disruption and turmoil caused by the adverse publicity following your article about his conviction for trademark offences (Echo, July 24)? This case was about some old phones found in the back of a cupboard in his office – they were not on show and not for sale – and led to the removal of valuable stock, some of which belonged to his customers. On top of that came the loss of many thousands of pounds worth of jewellery in the armed raid.

I would like to know how many hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of pounds and investigative hours this case has cost the taxpayer.

The police are probably under pressure to make arrests, but I would rather read headlines about the capture and conviction of those weapon-wielding masked robbers who smashed, grabbed and terrorised the staff.

John Cumberland, Rushyford.