A chef who stole a Lord of the Dance performer's engagement ring from her dressing room at Liverpool's Empire Theatre has been jailed for 22 months. Jake Salter, 32, of Heathfield Road in Wavertree, took the jewellery while the dancer was on stage, then attempted to pawn it the next day.
Liverpool Crown Court heard on Tuesday that Mackenzie Thompson had been performing at the Empire Theatre on July 21 2024, when the venue was hosting a production of Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance. That afternoon, she placed her engagement ring in a box which she left in her handbag in her dressing room ahead of matinee and evening performances.
Helen Chenery, prosecuting, described how Ms Thompson returned at around 10pm to discover the jewellery had been stolen. While the dressing room was not covered by CCTV cameras, Salter subsequently visited three branches of H&T Pawnbrokers the following day while attempting to sell a ring or have such an item valued.
Staff tip-off led to arrest
Staff became suspicious of the 32-year-old's behaviour and contacted police, reporting that he had stated he had been working as a chef at the Empire. Subsequent enquiries with the venue led to him being identified by officers, having been employed in such a role for the previous four months.
When interviewed following his arrest, Salter denied the theft and claimed he had been trying to pawn a ring which he owned. The stolen item, valued at £700, was never recovered.
In a statement read to the court on her behalf, Ms Thompson detailed how her fiancé had saved up for a year to purchase the ring, which was stolen at the beginning of a four-month nationwide tour of the production. She said: "I was absolutely distraught and heartbroken to find the box and ring were gone.
"The thought that someone had gone into my dressing room and gone through my belongings was a complete violation of my personal space. I'd only been engaged for six months.
"Following the incident, I spent hours searching the theatre for my ring along with my fellow cast members. When the tour moved on, I spent hours calling pawn shops in Liverpool and searching the internet for engagement rings for sale.
"It made me question everything and who could possibly take my ring."
Previous convictions and sentencing
Salter has 17 previous convictions for 33 offences, including receiving an 18-month imprisonment suspended for two years in November 2023 for burglary and theft. He had been due to appear in court for sentence for his latest crimes on Thursday last week but failed to show up, having been released on bail following an earlier hearing.
Callum Ross, defending, told the court: "There is plainly a different side to this defendant, one who could be describe as kind and considerate, who puts others before himself and is now, perhaps most importantly, determined to change.
"He has made genuine changes, it appears, over the last 24 months, engaging in therapy of his own volition, enrolling in university of his own volition, gaining employment of his own volition and moving to Manchester from Liverpool to distance himself from negative influence of his own volition. He apologises unreservedly for his actions and understands the impact his offending has had on Ms Thompson and her partner.
"He has stable accommodation. He has employment. He has difficulties in his background, including being a child in care and, more recently, difficulties with the breakdown of his relationship and custody of his son.
"Your honour may think that he can be given a final chance. I say that this is a defendant who can move on from a chequered past and has demonstrated that he can do so, given support."
When asked by Judge Ian Unsworth KC where the engagement ring now was, Mr Ross said that Salter claimed to have sold the item at a branch of Cash Converters in Bristol and added: "I asked him when he thinks he sold it. His response was that he cannot be exact on dates, but he said well over a year ago now.
"I suspect it may well be longer than that. Quite whether the police can make any enquiries as to whom Cash Converters in Bristol sold the ring to is quite another question."
Salter admitted theft, breaching a suspended sentence order and failing to surrender to bail. Appearing via video link to HMP Liverpool wearing a beige True Religion jumper, he was seen wiping away tears during the hearing before being jailed for 22 months.
Judge: 'tears are for yourself'
Sentencing, Judge Unsworth said: "Any member of a theatre, whether they are a member of cast, support crew or staff, bears a heavy degree of responsibility. Any performing member of a cast must be entitled to think that he or she can go onto a stage knowing their personal belongings, be it a mobile phone or a precious piece of jewellery, are safe, and that those other members of staff or support crew will behave wholly responsibly and not steal items while they are performing for benefit of the local public.
"You did breach your responsibility, and you breached it to a high degree by doing what you did. The item stolen was of substantial value to her, regardless of its monetary worth.
"I have witnessed you shed tears before the court today. I am quite satisfied that those tears are for yourself and not for your victim."
