A PERSISTENT shoplifter from Coventry has been jailed.
Andrew Smith was sentenced after he admitted stealing goods from Heron Foods in Walsgrave.
Smith was identified by officers from West Midlands Police’s Stoke and Wyken neighbourhood team, who saw CCTV showing him grabbing items off the shelves and leaving the store.
After his offences triggered a previous suspended sentence for shop thefts, the 41-year-old was jailed for 16 weeks – eight weeks for the offence, and an additional eight weeks for activating his suspended sentence.
Smith, of no fixed address, was previously handed a banning order preventing him from entering any Heron Foods store. Despite this, he continued to visit the shops and steal.
A West Midlands Police spokesperson said: “This is the latest in a series of successful prosecutions our Coventry neighbourhood teams have secured in the last 12 months.
“Along with custodial sentences, we work to apply for Criminal Behaviour Orders against known prolific offenders. These orders allow us to restrict them from visiting specific areas of the city and allow our officers to arrest them if they are found there.
“Across Coventry, our teams work daily with businesses to keep premises safe and investigate crime and anti-social behaviour.
“Every report we receive helps us build a picture of where these offences are happening and who might be committing them.”
Report offences to police via Live Chat at www.westmidlands.police.uk or by calling 101.
