Peterborough shoplifter told police they shouldn't be arresting him as he'd 'only' taken £60 of t-shirts from Superdry
A Peterborough shoplifter told police they shouldn’t arrest him as his loot was not worth at least £200.
Michael Benham stole the three t-shirts, each worth £19.99, from the Superdry store on September 26 – but was arrested quickly.
Peterborough Magistrates’ Court heard that when he was arrested, he told police he shouldn’t be arrested as the total value of the items was less than £200.
However, police did not take his legal advice – and he appeared in court on Wednesday (October 1), where he pleaded guilty to one count of shoplifting.
The court was told Benham (27) of Eastfield Road, Peterborough, has a total of 42 previous convictions for theft recorded against him – and he had been released from prison the day before stealing the t-shirts from the Queensgate store.
Kashif Khan, defending, told the court that Benham was receiving support in the community, and urged District Judge Ken Sheraton to impose a suspended sentence.
He said: “He requires help with drug misuse, his emotional wellbeing, his accommodation situation, his finances. A short custodial sentence would achieve little, and would urge you to impose a suspended sentence."
The court was told the t-shirts were recovered, so no order for compensation was made.
Judge Sheraton imposed a 12 week prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, and ordered Benham to take part in 30 days of rehabilitation activities with the Probation Service.
Benham was also ordered to pay £85 costs, and a £154 surcharge.
As he left court, Benham said ‘Thank you’ to the court.