Serial shoplifter, 33, who stole a £159 Kurt Geiger handbag at Heathrow Airport before boarding a flight must pay back the money
A serial shoplifter has been ordered to pay for a £159 bag she stole at Heathrow Airport.
Gemma Rowell, 33, was caught on CCTV taking the designer item from the Kurt Geiger store at London Airport before boarding a flight on Sept. 20.
Rowell was easily identified and appeared in North Tyneside Magistrates’ Court last week to plead guilty to one count of shoplifting.
She was ordered to pay Kurt Geiger £159 in damages.
Rowell has nine shoplifting charges to her credit, most of which were committed in the past year, and was fined £369 in July 2022 for stealing the equivalent of £1,200 from Fenwick in Newcastle.
Gemma Rowell, 33, has previously been fined for shoplifting after taking more than £1,200 worth of goods from a Newcastle department store
The thief was easily identified after the airport shop spotted the theft of the bag and pleaded guilty at North Tyneside Magistrates’ Court
Prosecutor Claire Armstrong said Rowell, of Wallsend, entered Kurt Geiger on Sept. 20 last year.
She added: “She looked at several handbags and chose a silver shoulder bag worth £159. She left the store without trying to pay and boarded a flight at the airport.”
Defensively, Mark Harrison said Rowell had been given a flight to visit her partner and was in a “pretty dark place” at the time. Mr Harrison told the court: ‘It was a thoughtless and artless transgression.’
In July last year, Rowell was fined £369 after helping herself to £1,200 worth of perfume and clothing from Fenwick in Newcastle.
On that occasion, she claimed it was a one-off, as she was desperate for money but had found a job and would stay out of trouble in the future.
However, a month later, she stole items from B&Q twice in just 48 hours, pocketing a lamp and laser leveler, worth a total of £205.
Rowell gave the excuse that she was renovating her house and was fined again.
Soon after, she committed her final offenses at Heathrow and just a few weeks later was given community service for further theft.