A shoplifter who committed multiple thefts at once has been jailed for three years.
Joe Edwards’ long list of thieving saw him stealing stock from shops on an e-scooter he stole from a customer and a charity box from a store’s counter.
A total of 20 separate offences also included a break-in that saw Joe Edwards smash a glass cabinet within a store in Nottingham city centre and take more than £9,000 worth of smartphones.
That proved to be the final theft from a series that saw the 38-year-old shoplift from multiple stores across Sherwood, Top Valley, Nottingham city centre, Wollaton and Mapperley.
Each occurred between January and May this, with alcohol, tobacco, chocolate Easter eggs and laundry products among the haul of items Edwards stole.
E-scooter theft
In the midst of the spree, the opportunistic thief also stole an e-scooter from the entrance of a shop in Bulwell, after watching a customer ride up to the store and leave it unattended just seconds earlier.
The thief’s catalogue of offences would eventually catch up with him when he was spotted by police and arrested on 14 August, with a multitude of charges then following.
These included one burglary, 11 counts of shop theft, a further theft, multiple counts of drugs possession, one count of handling stolen goods, a further fraud by false representation and a public order offence.
Having pleaded guilty to each, Edwards, of Mapperley, attended Nottingham Crown Court on Thursday (1 October), where he was sentenced to three years behind bars.
He was also made the subject of a five-year criminal behaviour order (CBO) banning him from entering Nottingham city centre, as well as any Tesco, Co-op, or Vision Express store in Nottinghamshire over that period.
No respect
Inspector Paul Ferguson of Nottinghamshire Police said: “Edwards is a prolific thief who clearly has no respect for the law, so we were pleased to see him receive this sentence.
“His long list of offending included shop theft after shop theft, as well as a high-value business burglary and the further theft of an e-bike that really demonstrated his opportunistic criminal nature.
“This thieving spree was completely unacceptable, so as I say, it was good to see him receive - not just a lengthy custodial sentence - but an even longer CBO to help us put a stop to his behaviour when he gets out of prison.”
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