(Image: North Yorkshire Police)
A thief is today serving a prison sentence after shop staff locked him in their store and prevented him from leaving.
Craig Spurr damaged the doors in an unsuccessful attempt to escape after he realised what the staff at Inner Space petrol station shop had done, said Alison Whiteley, prosecuting at York Magistrates' Court.
He had gone there with another man at 4am on March 17. The 24/7 shop keeps its doors locked at night to protect its staff but does open them for customers.
The two thieves were allowed in, took some meat from its displays and tried to leave.
“On the spur of the moment, a member of staff decided to lock the door so they could not get out,” said Ms Whiteley.
“Spurr tried to pull the doors apart and was unsuccessful.” Staff called police and the pair were arrested.
The doors Craig Spurr tried and failed to open
(Image: Google Street View)
Spurr was on bail at the time for burgling a café at 5.25am on December 15 when he left a trail of blood. Realising he was probably injured, police went to York Hospital and found him in Accident and Emergency where he was arrested, said Ms Whiteley
Spurr, 47, of no fixed address, denied stealing £75 meat from Inner Space and causing criminal damage to the shop’s door then failed to attend his trial. He was convicted in his absence.
He also initially denied burglary of the Delight Café on Tang Hall Lane, York, theft of laundry products worth £44.60 from the Co-op in Union Terrace on March 16, and theft of two boxes of KitKats worth £66.70 from Sainsbury’s in Davygate on March 24, but changed his plea after he was arrested on a warrant issued for failing to attend his trial for the Inner Space offences.
On February 16, he was given a 24-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months for five shop thefts and resisting a police officer.
Magistrates ordered him to serve the 24 weeks previously suspended and gave him four weeks concurrent for the new offences. They also ordered him to pay £44.26 compensation to the Co-op and £66 compensation to Sainsbury's.
Craig Robertson, for Spurr, said he had a badly ulcerated leg which may have been the cause of the blood at the café.
He was in “extremely poor health” generally and had more than once been placed in an induced coma by hospital staff.
“A period of time in custody may save his life,” said Mr Robertson, adding that Spurr wasn’t asking to be jailed.
“He isn’t a sophisticated offender, he steals in order to feel normal. Normality for Craig Spurr unfortunately is not a good place to be,” said the defence solicitor.