Desperate drug addict robbed Morley Ladbrokes during stealing spree
A drug addict who carried out a lengthy stealing spree from shops, robbed a bookmakers in a desperate cash snatch.
Gary Thorpe tried to grab a tray of money from a staff member in the Ladbrokes in Morley, and despite bystanders stepping in, he managed to flee with £165 of takings.
The 41-year-old was jailed at Leeds Crown Court this week for a string of offences.
The court learned that Thorpe had first broken into an old furniture store, now used for storage, on Queen Street in Morley on October 28 last year.
The culprits got away with £10,000 worth of tools, but Thorpe cut his leg after climbing in through a smashed window, leaving behind his DNA.
He committed a series of shoplifting offences between February and May, stealing from Morley Service Station, Asda , Morrisons, Farmfoods and Aldi.
Among the items stolen included vacuum cleaners, tins of tuna, meat and dairy products worth hundreds of pounds, prosecutor Oishee Dey said.
On May 1 he entered the Ladbrokes shop on Queen Street and where a staff member was emptying a games machine, Thorpe then made a grab for the money.
Despite other customers intervening to stop him and the doors being locked, he managed to escape with a chunk of the cash.
He has 66 previous convictions for 161 offences. Of them, 86 are for theft, along with robberies, ABH and criminal damage.
For his latest offending, he admitted robbery, non-dwelling burglary, six shop thefts and one attempted shop theft.
Mitigating, Martin Morrow said that having been held on remand, Thorpe was now drug free but said he was “realistic” about receiving a prison sentence.
Thorpe, of Nepshaw Lane, Morley, has been in custody since June 16.
The judge, Imran Shafi KC accepted that Thorpe had a long-standing issue with drugs.
He jailed him for 28 months in total, but warned him that unless he got his life under control, he would be facing “longer and longer” sentences.