Criminal Behaviour Order for prolific shoplifter

Officers in Welwyn Hatfield have secured a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO) for a prolific shoplifter.

Wayne Hyde, aged 46, of Scarborough Avenue in Stevenage, appeared at St Albans Crown Court on Friday 19 April where he was given a two-year CBO. It involves the following conditions:

• Not to enter any John Lewis store in the East of England
• Not to enter B&M in Hatfield

In addition, Hyde is banned for a year from Welwyn Garden City town centre – namely, Bridge Road, Church Road and Osborne Road. The only exception is if he is passing through in a vehicle or on public transport.

Breaching a CBO is a criminal offence so if Hyde fails to comply, he will be arrested. Hyde must also take part in a rehabilitation programme.

The CBO was secured after Hyde pleaded guilty to over 20 shoplifting offences in Welwyn Hatfield. The stolen items had a combined value of around £13,000 and he particularly targeted John Lewis in Welwyn Garden City.

Hyde was remanded at the beginning of the year and officers quickly got to work, building a CBO case to present to the courts.

PC Cameron Abraham, from the Welwyn Hatfield Neighbourhood Policing Team, led the case. He said: “We were determined to secure a CBO for Hyde as we understand the impact that such persistent offending has on our communities. With the dedicated help of our Welwyn Hatfield Community Safety Unit, we made it happen.

“Taking a preventative approach to crime is important to us and so we also worked closely with the Loss Prevention Officers at John Lewis to see how we could help them reduce shoplifting in the long-term. This involved regular meetings and has resulted in upgraded CCTV.

“I am pleased that our application for the CBO was successful and I hope this news reassures the local business community that we are committed to tackling shoplifting. We’ve received positive feedback from John Lewis and I am glad we’ve been able to help.

“It was a real team effort. I would like to say a special thank you to ASB Officer Debbie Georgiou for her tireless support building the case and to PC James Tassell who has greatly assisted with implementing the longer-term plan to tackle shoplifting at John Lewis. A special thanks also goes to PCSO Emma Carson who helped with evidence collection and Crime Prevention Officer Darren Cowell who produced a helpful report that has fed into the long-term plan.”

Join our new community messaging platform Herts Connected (opens in a new window) where you will receive free local police messages. You can also choose to receive messages from Neighbourhood Watch, Action Fraud and the Police and Crime Commissioner if that’s what you select when you sign up. 

You can use our community voice platform ‘echo’ to let us know what you think we should be prioritising in your area. Your feedback will help towards shaping our local policing priorities, initiatives and campaigns. Visit Echo (opens in a new window) and tell us your thoughts.