Girls aged 6, stop Blackpool shoplifter
The girls spotted Alan Morris hiding, and alerted Police
A shoplifter from Blackpool who was detained with the help of two eagle-eyed six-year-old girls has been jailed.
Officers were called on 7th November following reports that a shoplifter, wanted for 22 offences throughout October, had been spotted.
Following a short foot chase, the man thought he had escaped officers by hiding between a bin shed and a bush in a nearby front garden.
However, two girls saw the man and, realising officers were looking for him, pointed him out to them, despite the offender trying to ‘shush’ them.
Alan Morris, 31, of no fixed address, was arrested and has since been given a 9 month prison sentence and a three year Criminal Behaviour Order which bans him from entering any Asda and Tesco in Blackpool.
The girls were visited by officers in their school assembly, who awarded them a certificate and chocolates.
Sergeant Paul Regan said: “We wouldn’t have been able to detain the offender anywhere near as quick as we did if it wasn’t for the help of these two girls.
“They acted bravely and they should be very proud of themselves.”
Operation Vulture is Lancashire Constabulary’s response to shoplifting across the county, backed by Lancashire's Police and Crime Commissioner Clive Grunshaw.
The operation sees dedicated officers undertaking hotspot patrolling, increasing their visibility in targeted areas and creating strong partnerships with retailers across the county to better share intelligence, get a deeper understanding of retail crime and identify more offenders. First for all the latest news from across the UK every hour on Hits Radio on DAB, at hitsradio.co.uk and on the Rayo app.