A Spalding man has been jailed for 14 weeks and served a two-year criminal behaviour order (CBO) for shop theft and public order offences.

Lincolnshire Police said Marcus Kitching, 40, of Tawny Road, Spalding, appeared before Lincoln Magistrates’ Court, Tuesday 25 February, where he pleaded guilty to a total of 11 offences.

These included five counts of stealing from shops, two counts of assault of a shop worker, assault of a constable in the execution of their duties, two public order offences and obstructing a police constable.

A force spokesperson said: “This vigilance and proactive work are routine for our Neighbourhood teams, undertaken to locate prolific offenders, to bring them to justice, and prevent further criminality.”

PC Lockton of Spalding Neighbourhood Policing Team added: “We applied for a CBO to exclude Kitching from all retail premises, except one store for groceries and one for medication, and to prohibit him from being verbally or physically abusive towards any person in the district of South Holland. We are content the court has granted this order in the hope this curtails his future behaviour.

“Shop theft rarely exists in isolation, it’s often accompanied by assaults, threats and intimidation against retail workers and members of the public, with strong links to drug-related offending, anti-social behaviour and community harm. Any resulting community unease is wholly unacceptable, and we continue to work on all aspects of these crimes to make our district a safe and welcoming place to be."