Telford shoplifter spotted on Facebook by worker
A man who stole a £90 toy for his nephew's birthday was caught when his picture was spotted on Facebook, a court has heard.
Stephen Ben Locke was seen with a woman in Smyth's Toy Store on the Telford Bridge Retail Park, and later spotted taking the £89.99 Monster High toy set.
The 22-year-old walked off when challenged by a manager, but the woman was recognised by one of the members of staff, the town's magistrates were told,
When the staff member went on to the woman's Facebook profile, Locke, of Aston Court, Newport, was recognised as one of her friends.
Yesterday Locke admitted one charge of theft from a shop. He was given a conditional discharge of 12 months and ordered to pay back the cost of the toy in compensation, as well as prosecution costs of £85 and a victim surcharge of £15.
Miss Sara Beddow, prosecuting, said on September 10 last year Locke had been seen by the supervisor acting suspiciously while carrying the large toy set.
She said: "He then saw him leaving without paying. He then challenged the defendant outside the shop."
Locke walked away and despite being asked to return he refused. Mrs Beddow said: "The incident had been recorded on CCTV. It seems Mr Locke had been in company with a female who a member of staff recognised and was able to make the connection to the defendant via Facebook."
Miranda Peel, for Locke, said "This young man tells me he went to the store, it was his nephew's birthday and he was going to be the only person without a present. He made a bad decision."
She also said Locke had been through a number of troubles, including losing his four month old son to cot death four months before the incident, which he was struggling to come to terms with.
