B&Q raider who swiped taps worth £16,000 jailed but accomplice still running

A shoplifter who raided seven B&Q stores for their taps will see three years of freedom go down the drain after he was jailed.

Daniel Cleveland, 33, had stolen around £16,000 worth of home supplies, mainly expensive taps over a year-long reign of terror for the high street hardware store.

Cleveland was finally caught on April 30 but his alleged partner-in-crime is still on the run – his identity unknown.

CCTV captures the thief pushing a trolley around B&Q Larkfield in Kent. He then loads the trolley with pricy sinkware before hurling the box over a fence inside the store’s garden centre.

The pair then collected the goods from the other side and escaped in a vehicle with false plates.

Chf Insp Rav Pathania said the Met were now prioritising shoplifting, solving 92% more cases this year.

He said: ‘We work with businesses to target the most prolific offenders, as we know the fear they cause retail workers and the negative impact their offending has on communities.’

Simon Moss, B&Q security manager said the sentence sent a clear message to thieves.

‘Shoplifting is not a victimless crime’, he said.

‘B&Q is firmly committed to protecting and supporting our colleagues from the impacts of shoplifting, and to the safety and security of our customers.’

Officers arrested Cleveland at his home on Wednesday, 30 April.

Cleveland from Bromley pleaded guilty to nine counts of theft and three counts of attempted theft at Lewes Crown Court on Tuesday, 19 August.

He was sentenced to three years in jail on 25 September.

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