THIEVES broke into three Newport pubs targetting gaming machines, causing hundreds of pounds worth of damage.

The Engineers Arms, in Albert Terrace, Oddfellows and Foresters Arms, St Mary Street, and The Lamb, Bridge Street, were all targeted by burglars over the past week.

Trevor Lewis, landlord of The Lamb, returned from holiday on August 20, to find windows had been smashed at the pub.

Mr Lewis said he thinks the windows were smashed in an attempt to break in, but the offenders were frightened off. Nothing was taken, but the damage to the windows will cost around £700 to repair.

Nick Portman, who runs The Engineers Arms with Scott Taylor, lives in a flat above the property and was woken up at around 5am on Wednesday morning by noise from downstairs.

He said: "I got up and looked out the window and saw glass and then went downs and saw someone climbing out the window. The fruit machine was completely and utterly smashed. There was a knife on the floor and another one on the machine. It wasn't until later that I realised how lucky I was that I hadn't come down earlier, I could've been stabbed."

He said a couple of hundred pounds worth of had been done damage to the window and the fruit machine.

The Oddfellows and Foresters Arms was broken into in the early hours of Thursday morning. Four gaming machines were smashed and £600 stolen from the machines.

Landlord, Rhys Brown, said he left work on the Wednesday night and returned at 1.45pm on Thursday to find four doors had been kicked through and glass everywhere.

Police are appealing for anyone with information about the break-ins to contact them on 101.