Tesco shopper pleads guilty after stealing £1,400 from store over four month period

Some of the individual items of food were valued at more than £150.

The 33-year-old appeared at Peterlee Magistrates’ Court, where she pleaded guilty to six counts of theft from the supermarket.

Tracey Spensley stole items ranging from whiskey to washing pods from the branch in Bishop Auckland

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The 33-year-old’s solicitor stressed that Spensley issued her guilty pleas early and cooperated with proceedings.

Last week, a group of thieves raided a tobacco counter behind the tills at a Tesco in north London, before waving goodbye to shocked customers and cycling off.

Two men dressed in all black smashed a window at an Extra store in Colney Hatch, Barnet, and then jumped over the counter.

They frantically filled their bags with cigarettes and tobacco from behind the kiosk, as shocked shoppers and helpless staff watched on.

Before departing the north London store, one of the balaclava-donned thieves cheekily waved at a shopper and then fled on their bike.

The 33-year-old appeared at Peterlee Magistrates’ Court, where she pleaded guilty to six counts of theft from the supermarket

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Shoplifting, along with other petty crimes like phone snatching, has surged across the country over the past decade.

In 2023 alone, over 430,000 cases of shoplifting were recorded across the nation, according to the Office for National Statistics. This is the highest on record and over 33 per cent more than the previous year.

However, the actual figure is thought to be much higher.

Incidents of violence and abuse in shopping centres had risen by 65 per cent from 2021-22 to 2022-23, according to a report by British Retail Consortium.

A recent survey from the trade association also showed that incidents of violence and abuse against staff had risen by 50 per cent.