A serial shoplifter was called a 'sausage' by a police officer chasing him on a bike in a clip released after his arrest. James McMurray stole thousands of pounds worth of goods from supermarkets across Southampton.
The prolific thief is shown cycling through a red light while being pursued by police. In the newly released footage, the officer tells the shoplifter: 'Mate, you are going to get taken off in a minute. It's not worth it.' The officer then yelled: 'You are being a sausage.'
Officer on electric bike pursues suspect
The officer added: 'You're not getting away, I'm on a lecky,' referring to a slang word for an electric bike. McMurray, 38, was detained on Janaway Gardens after being spotted by the officer while out on patrol.
He was charged with 42 counts of shoplifting as well as possession of crack cocaine and heroin. The shoplifter was found to have stolen more than £3,000 of items from Tesco, Sainsbury's and Co-op stores in Southampton. He also raided a Poundland shop in Eastleigh.
Court sentencing and wider shoplifting trend
McMurray pleaded guilty to all offences after appearing at Southampton Magistrates Court on Friday October 30. He was sentenced to one year in prison and was also required to pay £85 in costs on top of a £187 victim surcharge.
British supermarkets are currently facing a surge of shoplifting incidents, with some 507,000 offences recorded in the year up to March 2026 in England and Wales. This was the second highest figure recorded in more than 20 years, surpassed only by a record 530,000 documented incidents the previous year.
