A former criminology lecturer who styles herself as the “UK’s poshest thief” has been fined for stealing Le Creuset cookware, steaks, wine and gin. Pauline Al Said and her husband, Mark Wheatcroft, were ordered to pay a combined £2,500 after thefts from a garden centre and a Marks & Spencer store.
Sentencing the couple at Portsmouth Crown Court, Judge Keith Cutler said shoplifters leaving supermarkets with “full trolley loads” were becoming more common and that the public were calling for “appropriate” sentences. He imposed a financial penalty after concluding that Al Said would not comply with community service.
The 35-year-old former senior criminology lecturer at Bath Spa University was found guilty of two counts of theft. Wheatcroft was convicted of one count of theft and one count of assault. The couple, from Southsea, Hampshire, represented themselves and argued their actions were at the “lower end” of the scale.
The first theft took place at the Old Barn garden centre in Horsham, West Sussex. Security officer John Dunkling saw Al Said walking towards the exit with two bags without paying. The bags contained spirits including gin and spiced rum, as well as more alcohol, Le Creuset cookware and a Le Creuset condiment set. When challenged, Wheatcroft threatened to punch Dunkling and made contact with his back. Al Said had used a security tag remover to snip off and discard tags around the store.
The second incident occurred at a Marks & Spencer in Winchester, where an undercover security professional spotted Al Said loading meat into a trolley. She had more than 30 steaks and nine bottles of wine. Al Said was fined £750 for each theft offence, while Wheatcroft was ordered to pay £750 for shoplifting and £250 for the assault.
