Lincolnshire Shoplifter Sentenced After Breaching Criminal Behaviour Order
Serial shoplifter, Damian Eastgate, is now behind bars, receiving an eight-week sentence after repeatedly stealing from shops in Sleaford, Lincolnshire, despite being banned from nearly every shop in town.
Evasion of Three-Year Ban
Eastgate, a 42-year-old resident of Almond Walk, Sleaford, was issued a three-year criminal behaviour order in November 2021 by the Lincolnshire Police. The order, banning Eastgate from nearly all local shops, was an attempt to minimise the shoplifter’s negative effect on both businesses and their staff.
Despite blanket ban, two businesses, Aldi and Wilsons newsagent, were off-limits to provide Eastgate access to essential goods. However, he was subsequently arrested after stealing from Aldi.
“Eastgate had been a prolific shoplifter in Sleaford for several years, and it was clear his behaviour was having a negative impact on the shops and staff working in them, many of these being private small businesses,” a spokesperson for Lincolnshire Police commented.
Continued Defiance
Following his Aldi theft, Eastgate's criminal behaviour order was amended to include the Mareham Lane shop. Despite this, Eastgate’s criminal actions persisted, and he committed further shop thefts on October 5, 14, and 15.
The convicted criminal appeared in Lincoln Magistrates' Court on October 19, standing guilty of three shop thefts and four breaches of his criminal behaviour order.
“We keep a continued watch of people who we have issued criminal behaviour orders for, in partnership with North Kesteven District Council, and we proactively release their image so that members of the community have the opportunity to stay clear of their offending, and are more able to report an incident if one occurs”, the police spokesperson further added.
Until November 24, 2024, Eastgate's behaviour order will remain effective.