Three Romanian citizens became, unwittingly, protagonists in an episode of the British documentary “Police Interceptors: Taking Down the Shoplifting Gangs”, broadcast by Channel 5, after the investigators demonstrated that they were part of an organized network of thefts from supermarkets. According to police, the group is responsible for more than 120 crimes with losses of almost £200,000.
„No speak English”
In the images captured by the cameras worn by the police, you can see the moment when the officers descend on a house in Hounslow, in west London, to arrest Nicolae Boia, aged 30. The detectives inform him that he is under arrest for conspiracy to commit theft, and he curtly replies, “No speak English.”
In the same operation, 38-year-old Oviliv Firan, who was in another room of the house, was detained. The third member of the group, Laura Miron, 27, had already been arrested previously after police intercepted her at the border as she tried to leave the UK and reach Ireland.
„Operation Even”
The investigation, carried out by Surrey Police under the name ‘Operation Even’, was a complex one. Detectives analyzed numerous surveillance images from stores across the country, trying to determine the role of each member of the group in dozens of shoplifting incidents.
According to the investigators, the group acted organized and specifically targeted large supermarkets. The members of the network entered the stores, and one of them monitored the area while the others hid the products in bags or backpacks. Sometimes they left the store without paying anything, and other times they made a small purchase at the self-checkouts to avoid suspicion.
Police discovered that the suspects sometimes returned to the same store after changing clothes to commit new robberies.
Hundreds of stolen products
After searching their home, investigators found hundreds of stolen products. Among them were perfumes, cosmetics, electronic devices, memory sticks, cables, toothbrushes, cigarettes and numerous bottles of alcoholic beverages.
The thefts were committed in several cities across the UK, from Poole and Portsmouth in the south to Bristol in the west and Wigan in the north. Although police were able to prove 120 offenses in court, investigators say the true value of the stolen goods could be much higher than the nearly £200,000 officially stated in the case.
The three suspects were charged with conspiracy to commit theft and initially pleaded not guilty. Later, before the trial, they changed their statements and admitted the facts at Guildford Crown Court.
The sentences were pronounced
The sentences were handed down at Chelmsford Crown Court in November 2024. Nicolae Boia was sentenced to two years and 11 months in prison, Oviliv Firan to three and a half years and Laura Miron to three years and three months.
Investigators say the three were just part of a wider criminal network involved in around 800 thefts across the UK. According to the police, the group’s activity stopped after the arrests made during the operation.
The case was also widely reported by the British publication Daily Mail, which published images from the moment the suspects were arrested and details about the police investigation.
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