A thief’s own CCTV footage was used to catch him red-handed with £10,000 worth of stolen goods from a delivery van, including one in Woodthorpe.
He was one of five thieves who were sentenced in court this week after two delivery drivers had their vehicles stolen containing hundreds of packages.
Two incidents in April and August, including one at Woodthorpe, saw a group of opportunist thieves drive off with two vans whilst the couriers were delivering parcels.
In one incident, officers took just 15 minutes to find a stolen van with 94 parcels inside after two men and a woman made a five-minute journey to one of their houses to try to hide the stolen goods.
The parcels included phones, tablets, clothing, tools, football kits and some trainers were quickly hidden within a bedroom.
However, they were swiftly found thanks to the force drone which was deployed into the skies to locate the stolen van and two cars which were seen to be in convoy following the incident. All three vehicles were traced back to the home of Liam Barnes, of Kingsley Street in Kirkby-in-Ashfield.
Upon entry into the house, officers found numerous parcels and packaging littered inside, which matched the description from the victim.
Despite trying to get the occupants out of the address to come to the door, officers forced entry into the property by sawing the front door off.
They found three people inside in an upstairs bedroom who were arrested in connection with the theft.
Officers were able to match from the invoice provided from the driver to those found with a premises.
Local CCTV footage was also used as part of the investigation, as well as Barnes’ footage which showed the movements of the offenders to and from the house nearby.
Five months later in August, Barnes also left another delivery driver traumatised and having to work in a different area following a similar incident.
The courier was delivering two parcels to a house in Coronation Road in Woodthorpe on 28 August 2020. He watched on to see thieves steal his van and drive out of sight.
Officers were able to track down the offenders having gone through clear CCTV footage, which showed the parcels being unloaded from the van.
They found them whilst out on a proactive patrols and at home addresses to make the arrests. A total of five people were arrested in connection with the two incidents and appeared at Nottingham Crown Court this week. Barnes was charged with two counts of theft in connection with both incidents.
The 32-year-old, was given a 21 month imprisonment, suspended for two years and ordered to do 120 hours unpaid work.
Meanwhile Anthony Chapman and Levi Smith were also sentenced in connection with the Woodthorpe theft in August.
Chapman, 32, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 15 months imprisonment suspended for two years. He has been ordered to do 100 hours unpaid work after being charged with driving a motor vehicle without consent, theft and driving whilst disqualified. Meanwhile, 24-year-old Smith, of Windermere Road in Forest Fields, was charged with theft and given a community sentence and ordered to do a 100 hours unpaid work.
Beth Creswell, 26, of Northolme Avenue in Bulwell, was given a conditional discharge for two years and Ashley Hargreaves, 24, of Bewick Drive in Colwick, was given a community sentence after pleading guilty to theft in connection with the Kirkby-in-Ashfield incident in April 2020.
Detective Constable Georgina Gallagher led the investigation.
She said: “This must have been a terrifying incident for both victims and understandably they have both been left very traumatised.
“It’s absolutely unacceptable for a delivery driver to be targeted in this way as they go about their job, making an honest living and the victim has been left shaken by what happened as you can imagine.
“Nottinghamshire Police will continue to proactively tackle theft, thoroughly investigate all reports and do everything in its power to bring offenders to justice.”
