A prolific shop thief has been jailed over his latest offences in Crawley.

Laurie Murphey had been issued with a Community Order in court for shop thefts in September.

Yet just a day later he breached a Community Protection Notice not to enter the town centre and committed further shop thefts.

The 34-year-old, of no fixed address, entered stores in the town and was seen stealing items from shelves.

At Crawley Magistrates’ Court on 18 November he admitted eight shop thefts, eight breaches of a Community Protection Notice, and one count of obstructing an officer in the execution of their duty.

He was detained by officers from Crawley NPT on 17 November and was remanded to appear before the court for the charges.

Murphey admitted the offences, and has been jailed for 18 weeks as a result of his latest offences.

The court was told how he entered Peacocks in Queens Square in Crawley on 21 September, a day after he had appeared in court and admitted shop thefts.

He entered the same store on 25 September, and also committed shop theft offences at Sainsbury’s in Crawley Avenue, and entered the town centre on numerous occasions through September and October.

Speaking after the case Crawley District Commander Chief Inspector Steve Turner said: “Our Neighbourhood Policing Team has worked closely alongside businesses in Crawley town centre to identify prolific offenders and ensure we gather evidence to pursue prosecutions against them.

“We understand the impact that shop theft has on retail workers and on the public, and we are determined to catch offenders.

“Murphey showed little regard for a court order which required him to stay out of Crawley town centre and the County Oak Retail Park. So we are pleased that Murphey was apprehended and is now serving a significant custodial sentence.

“We continue to encourage the public to report incidents to us and will continue to engage with businesses in Crawley to tackle shoplifting.”