A habitual shoplifter who used disguises to target stores in south Worcestershire, Shropshire and the West Midlands has been sentenced to 42 weeks in prison and given a five-year Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO). Craig Sawyer, 51, of no fixed address, is now banned from entering Worcestershire county and all Boots stores nationwide under the terms of his CBO, following his court appearance at Kidderminster Magistrates Court on Monday, January 6.
Sawyer was arrested at a Co-op in Malvern on Saturday 4 January and was found guilty of a total of 16 counts of theft from store – 12 of which were Boots stores including five in Evesham and five in Malvern. He was also convicted of thefts from a Boots in Walsall and one in Shrewsbury; as well as two thefts at a Co-op on Worcester Road, Malvern, one at B&Q in Malvern and one at Savers in Newport, Shropshire.
The thefts amounted to £11,475.55 and occurred between March and December in 2024. Boots has since confirmed to police that he was responsible for thefts totalling £28,000 from their stores nationally.
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Witnesses said that Sawyer was known to dye his hair different colours and use glasses to alter his appearance, and upon his arrest was found with numerous different outer jackets. However, this master of disguise always carried his favourite brown shoulder bag with him, earning him the nickname ‘Satchel Man’ in many of the stores he targeted.
At court on Monday (January 6), he was further sentenced to 22 weeks in prison to run consecutively as a suspended term was activated relating to two counts of theft from shops in Uttoxeter totalling £800.35 and going equipped for theft from store in Uttoxeter, all on 10 October 2024.
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Sawyer has also been issued a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) barring him from entering Worcestershire— unless travelling through by vehicle or train—and any Boots store nationwide for five years post-release.
Safer Neighbourhood Inspector for Wychavon and Malvern, Dave Wise, expressed satisfaction with the outcome, stating: “Achieving an immediate custodial sentence and CBO for Sawyer is a real success and serves to protect our retailers in the longer term.
Craig Sawyer, 51, was sentenced to 42 weeks in prison
“His CBO bans him from Worcestershire and from all Boots stores nationally. It’s our focus on retail crime and commitment to improving working relationships with local stores that has helped us catch this evasive and prolific thief.”
PC Paul Slaymaker, who is one of several neighbourhood officers in Worcestershire with a remit to focus on shoplifting, added: “The key to this successful prosecution is our relationship with our stores.
“We were able to work with retail staff closely in Evesham and Malvern to understand how Sawyer was operating and to encourage effective reporting at the right time to enable us to get one step ahead of him.
“Having the right intelligence allowed us to predict where he would go next and catch him in the act.”