Northampton shoplifer jailed
The 32 year old stole thousands of pounds worth of food
A 33-year-old Northampton man who repeatedly stole from three shops in the town has been jailed for 16 months.
Luke Scarley appeared before Northampton Crown Court for sentencing on October 15, after admitting 24 offences of theft from a shop between June 26 and August 29 this year.
Over a two-month crime-spree, the shops Scarley targeted were the Co-op in Semilong Road, One-Stop in Stanhope Road and Heron Foods in Harborough Road, stealing more than £2,000 worth of items.
Scarley, of Oasis House in Campbell Street, Northampton, stole predominately meat, cheese, alcohol, confectionery and laundry products from all three stores sometimes targeting the same store more than once on the same day.
He stole more than £1,000 worth of items from the Co-op over 10 separate occasions, and a further estimated £770 and £220 of goods from the One-Stop and Heron Foods after visiting each shop eight and five times respectively.
Speaking after sentencing, PC Kate Cayton of the Force’s Retail Crime Team, said: “Luke Scarley is a persistent shoplifter who has caused untold stress and misery on the business community in Northampton.
“We hope he will take advantage of his time in prison to get the help and support he needs, while at the same time providing our local businesses with respite from his offending.
“Retail crime is in no way a victimless offence – it harms store workers, businesses and contributes to higher prices for the rest of us.
“We take it very seriously and continue to work hard to prevent offences, support stores and bring those responsible to justice.”
Northamptonshire Police is committed to delivering against the national Retail Crime Action Plan and we will continue to work alongside our retail business partners to reduce retail theft and offences against retail staff, while bringing more offenders to justice.