Prolific West Sussex shoplifter who repeatedly breached his Criminal Behaviour Order jailed

Police said Samuel Bartlett was given the CBO in June last year in a bid to curb his offending and to protect the local business community.

It prohibited him from entering certain areas of Horsham town centre between the hours of 9am and 1pm daily, unless by a pre-arrange appointment, and entering any shop which he is already banned from. These include John Lewis, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, TK Maxx, Boots and Waterstones, Sussex Police explained.

However since then, Bartlett, 43, of Bishopric, Horsham, has committed numerous other offences, police added. Sussex Police said he was arrested on May 1, and charged with three counts of breach of his CBO and four counts of shoplifting.

He was remanded in custody to appear before Crawley Magistrates’ Court the following day, where he pleaded guilty and was jailed for four months, Sussex Police added.

Police Constable Roxi Prince-Iles said: “Bartlett is well known in Horsham for his persistent offending and has stolen thousands of pounds worth of products from stores in the area over the past few years.

“We applied for a Criminal Behaviour Order against him to restrict his access to town centre shops and to reassure the business community that we are doing everything we can to prevent theft offences against them.

“Bartlett has chosen to ignore the order on several occasions and now finds himself in prison.”

His CBO remains in place until June 2025, police confirmed.