Push-to-open door thwarts pulling thief

An attempted break-in in Chicago came to a fast end when a wannabe burglar was unable to pull open the door of a bar.

Surveillance footage shows a hooded man prying a lock off the Shambles bar shortly before 7am last Friday morning, then pulling at the door for several minutes, DNAinfo Chicago reports.

But despite throwing all his weight into the attempt, the would-be thief is unable to open it and get inside — because he never spots the sticker on outside of the door that says "Push".

Shambles owner Joe Lin said he acknowledges the funny side of the incident even though the bandit "ruined" the door.

Though the attempted robbery happened during daylight hours, the burglar was hidden from passers-by a temporary cover installed in front of the bar to protect its interior from harsh winter temperatures.

Another nearby bar, SmallBar, also had its windows and the locks on its door damaged sometime between 2am and 6am on Friday, though the suspected robber was also unable to enter and steal anything.

The Chicago Police Department believes the two incidents may be linked.