A prolific shoplifter, who targeted a supermarket and petrol station in Waltham Forest more than 100 times, has been jailed for three years following a Met Police investigation.
Mark Stavrou stole more than £16,000-worth of goods from the Morrisons petrol station in Salisbury Hall Gardens and Sainsbury’s Low Hall between January and July 2025.
Stavrou was sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court earlier this month to three years and two months’ imprisonment.
On Sunday, July 20, Stavrou was arrested on North Countess Road in Walthamstow in connection with a theft and assault at Morrisons Petrol Station in Salisbury Hall Gardens.
On Tuesday, July 22, he was charged with these offences, sparking an extensive investigation into a number of other thefts in the area with Stavrou the main suspect.
After reviewing hundreds of hours of CCTV footage and incident reports collated by staff at both stores, officers were able to link Stavrou to more than a hundred separate shoplifting offences.
Having been granted conditional bail at Thames Magistrates’ Court on July 23, after being charged with the theft and assault at Morrisons and a total of 67 shoplifting offences at Sainsbury’s, Stavrou went on to re-offend the following day, committing further thefts at the same locations.
On August 21, he pleaded guilty to all the shoplifting offences at Sainsbury’s and more than 30 committed at Morrisons, bringing the total to 102, as well as one count of criminal damage, assault and the theft of a bicycle.
Detective chief inspector Claudine Davie, from the Met’s local policing team in north-east London, says: “Across London, we’re relentlessly going after wanted and prolific shoplifters through intelligence-led patrols and operations in retail crime hotspots. Our officers are solving double the number of shoplifting cases compared to this time last year.
“Stavrou targeted these stores more than a hundred times, not only brazenly stealing thousands of pounds’ worth of goods but using violence and threats towards staff.
“In some instances, Stavrou stole crates of drink while staff were restocking shelves and often filled suitcases full of items before casually leaving on an e-bike.
“This behaviour is totally unacceptable, and it’s down to the relentless determination of officers that we have been able to link Stavrou to these crimes and secure a vast number of convictions.”
Earlier this month, the Met carried out the UK’s largest ever targeted crackdown on organised shoplifting gangs.
Officers raided more than 120 shops suspected of buying items stolen from major retailers and reselling them at discounted prices. Hundreds of thousands of pounds’ worth of items were seized and 32 people were arrested.
