DIY shoplifter jailed following three-month crime spree

Edward Warde appeared at Chester Crown Court on Tuesday 23 December where he was jailed for two years and six months.

Warde, of Woodside Park, Ryton-on-Dunsmore, had pleaded guilty to seven counts of theft from a shop and to one count of failing to provide a sample in custody.

During his hearing, the court was told that between Thursday 23 August and Sunday 9 November, Warde targeted seven DIY and hardware shops across the Warrington, Widnes, Winsford and Macclesfield areas of Cheshire.

Warde would enter these shops and take items such as silicone piping, electrical elements, plumbing equipment and tools and leave without making any attempt to pay for them.

It was estimated that Warde had stolen around £3090 worth of goods during the seven incidents, with the 39-year-old typically concealing the items in his own coat pockets or bags that he had brought with him.

He was challenged by staff in a shop in Winsford on 9 November, but despite their best efforts to stop him, he was able to flee the scene with around £900 of electrical items and plastic fixings.

The staff subsequently called Cheshire Police, with officers conducting a number of enquiries that quickly identified Warde as the suspect in this incident. Both Warde and a vehicle linked to him were also identified as having been present at the six other incidents across the county.

Officers subsequently put out a notification nationally that the vehicle was linked to the shoplifting series, with colleagues from Thames Valley Police locating Warde on the 23 November and arresting him for unrelated offences.

Warde was then brought back to Cheshire and taken into custody in relation to the shoplifting series, where he would be shown CCTV footage of him stealing the items from the shops in Warrington, Widnes, Macclesfield and Winsford.

Despite him clearly being shown in the video footage, he would answer no comment to all questions put to him by police during his interview.

Despite his refusal to answer any questions in relation to the shoplifting series, he would be charged and remanded in custody to appear to appear in court on 25 November where he would eventually plead guilty.

Police Constable James A’Hearne, who lead the investigation into Warde’s offending, said:

“Shoplifting is not a victimless crime and we do all we can to protect out local businesses and prevent offenders like Edward Warde from taking from them.

“That being said, Warde’s shoplifting was nothing short of brazen. From the CCTV footage we reviewed as part of our investigation his offending, we saw that he boldly entered several hardware retailers and made no effort to be subtle when it came to stealing the products inside."

Police Constable Sigourney Murphy, who assisted in the investigation added:

“Even when challenged by staff, he continued to cherry-pick items from the store shelves, put them into his pockets and bags and fled the scene as if he had done nothing wrong.

“Despite refusing to answer any questions in relation to the whether he was involved in these incidents, due to the overwhelming amount of evidence against, he was left with no choice but to plead guilty. I hope he spends the next two and a half years behind bars contemplating his actions.”