Prolific Brighton and Hove shoplifter jailed for 34 months

A persistent and prolific Brighton and Hove shoplifter has been jailed for 34 months by a judge at Lewes Crown Court.

Elliot Cahill, 33, formerly of Clarendon Villas, Hove, was sentenced for brazenly stealing meat, fish and other food, laundry products, jeans and other clothes from several shops over more than a year.

Cahill admitted 15 counts of theft, a charge of stealing drinks worth more than £800 in a restaurant burglary and being in breach of a criminal behaviour order.

He was also in breach of a 21-month suspended prison sentence – and Judge Mark Van Der Zwart activated 12 months of that sentence at Lewes on Thursday (31 October).

Judge Van Der Zwart jailed Cahill for 16 months, to be served consecutively, for breaching the criminal behaviour order which banned him from North Street, in Brighton.

He was banned from North Street for repeatedly targeting the White Company, Oliver Bonas and Boots, walking in and helping himself to goods before leaving without paying.

The judge also jailed Cahill for a further six months, to be served consecutively, for stealing meat, prawns and salmon, making 34 months in total.

He received concurrent rather than consecutive sentences for the remaining offences and at one point the judge told him: “You are lucky.”

Gareth Burrows, defending, said that while Cahill admitted breaching the criminal behaviour order imposed by the court, his bank branch was in North Street – and was the only branch for miles.

Mr Burrows said: “This is clearly persistent offending but at the lowest end that the court will see.”

Mr Burrows also said: “The offending would not have passed the custody threshold if it was in isolation.”

He added: “This is unsophisticated and unplanned walking into shops and walking out again, often in plain sight of staff and CCTV, with the security tags still attached.”

Mr Burrows said: “This is, at its heart, persistent shoplifting by someone with a long and entrenched drug addiction.

“He is someone who had a difficult childhood in the care system. He had no positive familial influences and became addicted to drugs at an early age.”

Nikki James, prosecuting on behalf of the probation service, said that the court had given Cahill community sentences in the past including a residential drug treatment placement when he was given a suspended prison sentence. He also stopped turning up for his probation appointments.

But he walked out, she said, adding: “While he initially engaged, the level of contact with probation has consistently failed. He’s no longer suitable for a community sentence.”

Lydia Stephens, for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said that Cahill had 49 convictions for more than 120 offences.

While he mostly stole from shops, he broke into Raffaello, the restaurant at the Leonardo Royal Hotel Brighton Waterfront, in Bartholomew Square, Brighton, and stole cash and drinks worth £870.

In Churchill Square, he stole clothes worth more than £860 from Urban Outfitters and, on another occasion, jeans worth more than £600 from the Levi’s store.

He repeatedly targeted branches of the Co-op, in Old London Road, Patcham, and Blatchington Road, Hove, often stealing meat. But he also took Fairy Liquid and laundry gel. And he also stole from Waitrose, in Western Road, Brighton. The value was usually in three figures.

Judge Van Der Zwart said: “(You) have 49 previous convictions totalling 123 criminal offences. Your first was when you were aged 14 years and you’ve been a very frequent offender ever since.

“The majority of your offending has been by stealing things. The majority of those offences has been shoplifting but you also have convictions for burglary of houses and commercial properties.

“Sometimes you also assault people. Misuse of controlled drugs appears to be much of the cause of your offending.

“Over the years, you’ve had many different types of custodial and community penalties intended to punish but also to divert you away from offending and to help you to stop taking drugs.

“That included a court order imposed on you in 2022 prohibiting you from going to a part of Brighton and Hove where you committed many of those offences.

“None of those sentences have worked.

“In February this year you appeared before myself for breaching that court order, for more offences of theft, breaching bail and committing offences while subject to a suspended prison sentence.

“I was persuaded that because no other sentences had worked, a place at a residential rehabilitation service for people wanting to be free of substance misuse was worth a try.

“I sentenced you to another suspended prison sentence and made you subject to a drug rehabilitation requirement with a condition you take up the residential placement.

“However, within a few weeks you’d left the placement, against its rules. You returned but left again and were then out of contact.

“In April this year I heard evidence from a member of staff of Change Grow Live and I was persuaded to give you yet another chance because, despite leaving the placement and despite other offences you committed in 2023 coming to light, you had made positive progress in addressing your addiction.

“I deferred sentence to see if you could work with the placement and keep out of trouble but you couldn’t.

“So far as I can tell, you’re either unwilling or unable to take opportunities the court has given you.

“Despite the positive steps you took earlier this year to address your addiction, your offending has continued almost unabated.

“You’re no sooner given a chance by the court, than you throw it away and commit more offences.

“You think you can help yourself to as many items in shops as you can carry and run off with in order to sell for money to buy or exchange for drugs to feed your addiction.

“There is increasing public concern at flagrant shoplifting. The public and shop proprietors of Brighton and Hove now simply need to be protected from you. There can’t be any more chances.

“I hope that during the custodial sentence I’m now compelled to impose, you’re able to make progress addressing the reasons why you offend.”

The judge said: “Most offences if stood alone, would not attract immediate custodial sentences. All are unsophisticated and unplanned.”

But the number of offences was an aggravating factor and the judge imposed prison sentences adding up to almost three years while bearing in mind totality and proportionality.

He also imposed a new criminal behaviour order banning Cahill from North Street and Churchill Square, in Brighton, and every branch of the Co-op and Waitrose in Brighton and Hove.

He was also banned from staying in any shop in Sussex if asked to leave by the owner or any employee or any member of security staff.