Massy supermarket shoplifter sent to jail for six months

The court has sent a message to those who would wish to steal from Massy stores that jail is a real consequence of their actions.

Allan Williams is a 42-year-old man who does mechanic work, and who, for two years has lived a non-criminal life working at a shop in Murray’s Road. However, he is a man with a record, which tells a tale of his habits.

Senior Magistrate Rickie Burnett spoke to Williams about his record, after he pleaded guilty to stealing two packets of Lasco strawberry drink mix – $7.96; one DAK premium ham – $16.21; one box Orchard apple juice – $5.50 and one Johnsonville beef sausage – $21.15, all with a total value of $50.82, the property of the Massy store at Arnos Vale.

Williams’ plan to steal the items had failed after the loss prevention officer at the Arnos Vale branch of the supermarket picked up on his suspicious behaviour this Tuesday. The employee had noticed Williams picking up items and putting them in his bag. After the employee went in search of the individual, he met him at the cash desk, but he was not cashing the items that he had been observed removing from the shelf and placing in his bag. Instead, after the defendant was intercepted at the exit, said items were found in the bag, and no receipt provided.

To the police officers who responded to the call, the defendant gave a statement admitting his plan.

He summed them up for the magistrate, saying that he thought, “I going buy something and try tek something… but nah get tru.”

“Well I am looking at your record Mr Williams and although some convictions are spent…you are in the habit of committing offences, theft, burglary,” Burnett commented.

The defendant said that he had stopped for a good while, causing the senior magistrate to comment, “Well last time you were convicted of theft would have been in 2015. That’s a good time?”

He was also convicted for stealing batteries from Coreas, but when reminded of this, he said, “Yeah but I never steal no batteries.”

The defendant, who early said that a piece of iron had dropped on his foot last Wednesday and “I couldn’t walk good so”, admitted that he committed the act because he didn’t have any money to make any moves.

“Stealing from somebody what’s that going to do?… So what happen…any time you have no money you will go and you will steal something?” the senior magistrate asked him.

He replied that he would not.

“I don’t know…Well today is not going to be a lucky day for you,” Burnett commented.

“It seems as though persons continue to go in Massy store, and maybe because I have not been sending them to prison, they’re probably getting the wrong message. So today you are going to get the right message, yes? You have to go to prison for six months,” he ended.