A prolific shoplifter has been convicted of a series of offences that included the theft of homeware worth more than £2,400 from a shop that he targeted a dozen times.
Elliot Cahill, 31, of Clarendon Villas, Hove, repeatedly stole items from the White Company shop, in North Street, Brighton, including 10 instances in May and June of this year alone.
On each occasion, Cahill was seen by staff and filmed entering the store, selecting various items including electric diffusers, pillows and luxury gift sets, and then leaving without paying.
At times, he even left with the items held above his head.
In March, Cahill was also seen to steal cosmetics from Boots, also in North Street, and food worth more than £100 from the Co-op supermarket, in St James’s Street, Brighton, on two separate visits.
In May, he went into the Oliver Bonas shop, in North Street, and checked the price tags of various items on a table.
He left empty-handed but returned shortly afterwards and stole items that included a large mirror and a storage box worth more than £100.
Cahill stole goods worth more than £2,800 in total over a four-month period.
He was charged with 16 counts of shoplifting and, at Brighton Magistrates’ Court on Monday 13 June, he admitted all the charges.
He was released on bail with conditions barring him from some areas of the centre of Brighton, pending sentencing on Wednesday 3 August.
Sussex Police said: “Cahill was identified as a repeat offender by a dedicated team working under the banner of Operation Apprentice, incorporating Sussex Police, Brighton and Hove’s Business Crime Reduction Partnership (BCRP) and Business Improvement District (BID) ambassadors.
“Operation Apprentice is the police response to business crime and anti-social behaviour in Brighton and Hove, through which officers work closely with the business community to identify areas and individuals of concern and work together to share information, gather intelligence and take positive action.”
Inspector Ben Hearth, Brighton and Hove’s lead for business crime, said: “Elliot Cahill was identified as a prolific offender thanks to the collaboration between Sussex Police, businesses and our partners in the community.
“That sense of teamwork is vital to catching these repeat offenders who cause so much harm to our communities – not just in financial losses to the businesses they target but to the shop workers who are intimidated and forced into impossible situations.
“We will continue to work alongside the business community to protect them from harm and bring perpetrators to justice.”
Sussex police and crime commissioner Katy Bourne said: “The brazen attitude of this individual, who repeatedly stole from Brighton shops with no regard for the negative impact he was having on customers and staff, highlights why Sussex Police is working hard with businesses to prevent repeat offending.
“Shoplifting is not a victimless crime, neither is its impact low level, so I’m very pleased that this individual has been found guilty.
“His conviction is a great example of how Sussex Police work with partners to deter criminals and remove prolific offenders from communities.”
” His conviction is a great example of how Sussex Police deters offenders”
I don’t think it is. Google tells me the same bloke was convicted of shoplifting from the same shops in 2016. Burglary in Hove in 2012 . All to support his heroin addiction.
It’s a great example of how cuts to drug treatment cost more in the long run.
I don’t think his arrest and release on bail will deter his need for heroin