Couple who locked their dogs in boiling car seen on CCTV earlier taking money from staff tip box

A couple who were filmed confronting police officers as they smashed their car window to rescue dogs from the sweltering vehicle have also been caught on CCTV stealing tips from a seafront café on the same day.

In footage obtained by MailOnline, the couple can be seen appearing to take the cash left for staff - after demanding a refund on the food they had eaten - from a family-run cafe.

In a second video recorded nearby later on in the day, the pair were filmed by witnesses as they returned to find police smashing the windows of their car, which is untaxed, to rescue dogs left inside in cages on what was the second hottest day of the year.

The RSPCA told MailOnline the temperature inside of the car could have reached up to 117F.

Staff at Carats Café and Bar in Southwick, near Brighton, shared the footage of the couple in a bid to identify them after they were caught helping themselves to the cash.

The team described the theft, which took place shortly before midday on Saturday, as 'unfair and completely unacceptable' and said the man and woman had received a full refund after ordering two breakfasts because they complained they were unsatisfactory.

It wasn't until management later checked the CCTV that they realised the couple had appeared to take coins from the tip jar and had also not paid for drinks which had been taken from fridges next to the counter.

In separate footage which was filmed by a bystander hours later, police officers smashed their way into the black vehicle belonging to the same couple on Brighton seafront after concerns were raised about the dogs who were sweltering inside.

Sussex Police did not respond to MailOnline when asked if the couple would face charges for theft.

Sources told MailOnline that the family - the mother, father, and two sons aged around nine and six - had been on the pier having parked up outside Sealife a short while beforehand. The father became infuriated with police as they tried to give him a verbal warning, it was claimed.

Speaking to MailOnline, café manager Zoe Kibble said: 'They came to the till and ordered two breakfasts and while the member of staff was distracted, they just opened the fridge next to the counter and helped themselves.'

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