Thieves broke into a Wombwell charity shop only a few yards away from the police station - and stole just 10p.
Age UK was one of a number of shops targeted by thieves in which the familiar signs of a roof break-in were evident.
Staff at the former Help the Aged shop, which is located next to Akram chemist, opened up on Monday morning to find a large hole in the roof but noticed nothing had been stolen except 10p from a collection box.
A similar scene was discovered by staff at The Fish Bar - a hole in the roof but nothing more than 30p from the till was taken.
However, the result was far more devastating for the Age UK Barnsley shop next to Linda's Café.
Like others, staff at the shop discovered a large hole in the roof, but also that the safe had been stolen - which had £600 inside from Friday and Saturday's trading.
Assistant manager, Susan Aylward, said the safe had been bolted deep into the floor but the thieves had managed to remove it without even damaging the tiles.
She said: "I can't think how they would have removed it, especially without damaging the tiles, it was bolted so deeply I can't even get my finger to the bottom of the hole. They also managed to break through the steel door at the back of the shop."
Susan also suggested the thieves may have gained entry to the row of buildings via the 'Wombwell Arch' railings leading onto Pearsons Field.
© 2013 Barnsley Chronicle Ltd