24 weeks in prison for prolific shoplifter

A shoplifter who carried out 17 thefts between June and August has been sentenced to 24 weeks in prison thanks to proactive work by the Lincoln Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT).

Drew Garside, 27, of Laughton Way North, Lincoln, received the sentence after repeatedly targeting shops in Lincoln city, including Co-op stores, Boots, Pets at Home, Tesco and the Post Office. His thefts included alcohol, chocolates and coffee.

The hearing at Lincoln Magistrates’ Court also took into account six thefts which took place between 6 June and 12 July, as well as 11 further incidents between 28 June and 16 August. He was also convicted for one count of possessions on Class A drugs.

He was arrested on Wednesday 17 August following proactive work by the city’s NPT, and his sentence was given the following day.

Garside had also previously been given a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) due to persistent begging on 15 May 2019, with conditions designed to prevent further offending. The conditions included not placing himself in a position to gather money in the city centre, or to approach anyone and ask for money in the city centre.

Following the hearing, this CBO has now been adapted to include a ban on entering retail premises in Lincoln to reflect his persistent shop-lifting, and extended until 15 May 2024.

A CBO is an order designed to tackle the most serious and persistent anti-social individuals where their behaviour has brought them before a criminal court. If it’s breached, this is a criminal offence and custodial sentence can be enforced to deal with the individual.

We are proactively release his image now so that members of the community have the opportunity to recognise offending, and are more able to report an incident if one occurs.

If you have an incident you feel needs police attention, please contact us on 101.