‘Intimidating’ career criminal jailed for robbery and series of shop thefts

Michael Winner used his physical presence to intimidate staff and if that didn’t work, he would threaten to batter them with the bottles of booze he had just ‘brazenly’ stolen.

The 37-year-old, who has a lengthy record for dishonesty and violence, was not averse to telling shop workers exactly what he intended to do before helping himself to food and alcohol.

Teesside Crown Court heard how Winner carried out six shop thefts in Redcar, over a week-long campaign of criminal activity, just days being given a community order for another raft of shop thefts.

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Paul Cleasby, prosecuting, said the defendant’s crime spree took on a more serious element when he walked into a shop on Linthorpe Road, Middlesbrough, and threatened staff with a knife before stealing booze and vapes.

He said the serial shoplifter intimidated staff in Farm Foods, Morrisons, and Tesco, in Redcar before stealing bottles of spirits and jars of coffee, on March 16.

Three days later he returned to Tesco and again stole booze before continuing his spree on March 21 when he again targeted Morrisons and Farm Foods.

Dealing with the robbery, Mr Cleasby added: “He brandished his knife, he pointed the knife towards the female worker and the male worker heard him say ‘open the till and give me all of the money you have got’.

“The male worker pressed the panic button on his wrist before the defendant climbed onto the till area and past the glass partition.

“The workers fled to the store room and watched the defendant for a few minutes on the shop CCTV.”

The court heard how Winner was arrested a short time later following another incident and told officers he had no recollection of what happened.

Winner, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to robbery, possession of a bladed article, six shop thefts, and three threatening behaviour charges, between March 16 and April 4, this year.

John Nixon, mitigating, said his client had a longstanding drug addiction which was behind his offending and was anticipating a lengthy custodial sentence.

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Judge Howard Crowson locked the career criminal up for a total of four years and six months for his latest spree of offences.

“This was a campaign of perpetual thefts you carried out on shops in Redcar. Your substantial build must have been intimidating,” he said.

“On April 4, you entered the small shop on Linthorpe Road and used a knife to threaten the staff.

“All of these offences could have been robbery due to the intimidation but I can only sentence you for what you have been charged.”