Prolific thief is jailed after breaching suspended prison sentence

A prolific shoplifter has been put behind bars after he breached a suspended prison sentence by committing four thefts.
Pictured is Damien Godfrey, 37, of Victoria Square, Ashbourne, who has been jailed for 36 weeks for committing four thefts and for breaching a suspended prison sentence.Pictured is Damien Godfrey, 37, of Victoria Square, Ashbourne, who has been jailed for 36 weeks for committing four thefts and for breaching a suspended prison sentence.
Pictured is Damien Godfrey, 37, of Victoria Square, Ashbourne, who has been jailed for 36 weeks for committing four thefts and for breaching a suspended prison sentence.

Chesterfield magistrates’ court heard on Wednesday, April 6, how Damien Godfrey, 37, struck at Holland & Barrett and the Lighthouse Charity Shop in Matlock as well as at Sainsbury’s and Halfords in Derby.

Prosecuting solicitor Becky Allsop said: “He was seen in January on CCTV taking pain killers from Sainsbury’s and was spotted at Halfords taking something off the peg and leaving without paying.

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“He was also seen on April 5 at the Lighthouse Charity Shop putting an item in his bag and leaving and he was also seen during the offence at Holland & Barrett.”

Heroin addict Godfrey, of Victoria Square, Ashbourne, told police he had come to Matlock to go to a clinic and he stole a blood-pressure arm monitor from the Lighthouse Charity Shop and creatine and Amino Acid 5000 capsules from Holland & Barrett.

He also accepted taking a large amount of Nurofen and Lemsip capsules from Sainsbury’s in Derby and the court heard how he also stole a Ring Power Inverter from Halfords in Derby.

Godfrey pleaded guilty to the two thefts in Matlock which happened on April 5 and to the two thefts which happened in Derby in January.

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By committing the four thefts, he also admitted breaching a suspended prison sentence originally imposed for a previous theft offence.

Defence solicitor Kevin Tomlinson said Godfrey has been battling to overcome heroin addiction and has been getting support from Phoenix Futures and has been achieving negative test results for the class A drug.

Mr Tomlinson added that Godfrey stole the capsules from Holland & Barrett because his GP had told him he was significantly underweight and he stole the blood pressure monitor for his mother.

Magistrates, who described Godfrey as a prolific shoplifter, sentenced him to 36 weeks of custody and ordered him to pay £189.67 in compensation.