Serial shoplifter from Runcorn handed a Criminal Behaviour Order

A persistent shoplifter from Runcorn has been handed a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) in a bid to curb his offending.

Alan McCormick, of Bridgeway West, Windmill Hill, has been committing offences in Halton since 1999.

The 40-year-old has been convicted of 29 theft-related offences, the latest of which saw him steal items worth a total of £122 from The Shopping City’s Wilko store on Wednesday 4 November.

In a bid to deter McCormick from committing further shoplifting offences, Halton’s Problem Solving team applied for a three-year CBO.

The banning order was imposed on McCormick by Warrington Magistrates’ Court on Monday 11 January.

It prohibits him from:

• Entering seven stores in Runcorn – Wilko at The Shopping City and the Co-ops in Windmill Hill, Balfour Street, Halton Road, Grangeway, Murdishaw and Granville Street – and the Asda supermarket in West Lane
• Concealing any item prior to payment at any retail premises in Cheshire.

Police Constable Andy Maskall, of the Halton Problem Solving Team, said: “Alan McCormick is a persistent shoplifter who blatantly steals large quantities of stock from stores in full view of staff and members of the public.

“There comes a point when you have to say enough is enough and take additional action to protect stores.

“The coronavirus pandemic has had a significant financial impact on businesses and the last thing that retail premises in Runcorn need is to continue to be targeted by a serial shoplifter like McCormick.

“CBOs are preventative orders with strict restrictions that are imposed in a bid to stop persistent offenders committing further crimes.

“They are applied for separately to prosecutions for criminal offences as a last resort, and I am pleased to say that we have seen a significant reduction of offending in Cheshire from those who are subject to a CBO.

“It is an offence to breach the terms of a CBO. The sanctions imposed for doing so can be severe, with the maximum penalty being five years in prison.

“McCormick has been made aware of this.

“I hope that the CBO has the desired effect and prevents him from committing further shoplifting offences.”

David Keane, the police and crime commissioner for Cheshire, added: “CBOs address persistent criminal behaviour by giving repeat offenders strict requirements and prohibitions which they must adhere to, or else they are breaking the law.

“I am pleased to hear that CBOs, one of many tools Cheshire Constabulary uses in a bid to improve our communities, have been having the desired effect of reducing offending, the number of victims of crime and the demand on the police.

“I hope that this continues.”

Anyone who encounters McCormick breaching the terms of his CBO over the next three years is asked to contact Cheshire Constabulary on 101 to report it.