A GROUP of “dine-and-dashers” who allegedly left a pub without paying their £150 bill have been slammed by the furious landlord.
CCTV images from the Horse and Jockey pub and hotel in Tideswell, Derbyshire show the group of four people who pub staff accuse of drinking ale and eating ribeye steak they did not pay for.
The group are said to have eaten two 10oz steaks, worth £27 each, along with two Derbyshire gammon steaks worth £15.25 on June 24.
They also enjoyed several lagers and real ales, it has been claimed.
Landlord John Watson told MailOnline: “I don’t know how people have the audacity to act that way, it’s shocking behaviour.
“We haven’t had anything like this before but it seems to be happening more often across the country.”
He added: “The bar staff said they made no attempt to pay after having a really good meal, they simply walked out and weren’t seen again.”
The group allegedly chose a particularly busy night to make their move, quietly slinking away without being noticed by staff.
John’s son Sam, who works at the eatery, claimed the group were ordering some of the menu’s “pricier” items.
The venue was busier than usual due to a road race which ended at the Horse and Jockey, he added.
Sam said that the police had not yet been informed of the alleged wrongdoing, and staff are hoping the group will return to the venue to settle their bill and that will be “the end of the matter”.
CCTV images of the group were uploaded to Facebook in a post accusing them of not paying their bill.
The post, from the Horse and Jockey social media page, reads: “If anyone recognises any of these people please let us know, or kindly direct them back to the pub so they can pay there £100+ bill for food and drinks from Monday night the 24th.”
Several users replied to the post, wishing for the situation to be resolved.
A number of dine-and-dash incidents have been reported in recent times, with Britain’s worst offenders being jailed recently for skipping out on restaurant bills worth more than £1,000.
Bernard McDonagh, 41, and his wife Ann McDonagh, 39, were caught on camera striking at a string of eateries across Wales.
The shameless couple, who have three children, rung up bills totalling £1,168.10 from five different restaurants.
They were in May this year jailed for a total of 20 months after pleading guilty to five counts of fraud at Swansea Magistrates’ Court.
The pair also admitted four shoplifting offences after swiping £1,017.60 worth of goods from Tommy Hilfiger, Sainsbury and Tesco.
Ann McDonagh pleaded guilty to a further count of obstructing a police officer.
She has 18 convictions from 36 offences including fraud and theft, while her husband also has a history of theft.
Sentencing, Judge Paul Thomas KC told Ann McDonagh she had the “leading role” in the scam and was a “fluent and practiced liar”.
He also said the couple had both done “significant harm” to the traveller community with their behaviour, which could “fuel and reinforce some people’s negative stereotypes”.
He added: “If your community is, as I am told disgusted with your behaviour, they have every right to be.”
