Two men sentenced following theft of designer handbag

Our pledge to tackle retail crime and ensure those responsible are brought to justice has continued this week, after two men were sentenced for stealing a designer handbag from a store in Cobham earlier this year.

Jack Jones, 19 (DOB: 05/06/2005) from Harrow, and Joshua Grant-Mackenzie, 22 (DOB: 18/09/2002) from Feltham, both pleaded guilty to thefts of designer handbags from Phoenix Style in Cobham on 13 January and Phoenix Style in Wimbledon on 14 January at an earlier hearing.

They were sentenced at Guildford Magistrates’ Court last Tuesday (29 April), where they were banned from entering any Phoenix Style store for 18 months and ordered to carry out 80 hours of unpaid work within the next 12 months and to each pay £1,250 in compensation.

The Cobham theft took place on Monday, 13 January, around 4.40pm at the store in Oakdene Parade.

CCTV from the store shows Jones walking around the shop and engaging with a staff member before leaving.

Around 20 minutes later, Jones returned to the shop with Grant-Mackenzie, who walked over to a table by the door where a black leather Chanel Caviar handbag with silver hardware was hanging.

Grant-Mackenzie cut the cable securing the £4,800 handbag, before making off with it without making any attempt to pay for it.

Both men then ran away from the store.

The stolen item has never been recovered.

Elmbridge Borough Commander, Inspector Lucy Marriott, said: “Shoplifting continues to be a priority for my team, and we will always pursue those responsible for these thefts relentlessly.

“Retail crime has a devastating impact on local businesses and shops and leaves the victims feeling terrified and fearful in their workplace. 

“We are committed to addressing this crime under our retail crime strategy, by responding appropriately, carrying out a thorough investigation and working with retailers to prevent crime where possible.   

“We urge anyone who has been a victim of retail crime to report these thefts so that we can identify hotspots and trends, act swiftly, and prevent crime from happening and catch the offenders where it does occur.  

“Pursuing all appropriate avenues to identify offenders, collect evidence, recover stolen property, ensure witnesses are located and interviewed, and get these crimes to court, is a priority for my team.”