Criminal 'feels mean' about what he did to victims
31.05.2023 - 11:31
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
An elderly food bank volunteer lost her mum's wedding ring in a callous handbag snatch by a prolific sneak thief as she shopped in Aldi. The 73-year-old was browsing the aisles when 37-year old Martin Stokes crept up to her trolley before grabbing the bag and walking off.
Her handbag contained a yellow wedding band belonging to her mum plus a Samsung J12 phone, a red purse, her car key, bus pass and driving licence. Police arrested Stokes after CCTV of him walking away from the store at the Crownpoint retail park in Denton was posted on Facebook, a court heard.
It emerged Stokes had carried out a string of other thefts - the court heard another elderly woman had her purse stolen containing £100 stolen after Stokes asked her for help to find chicken in a Tesco supermarket.
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Another theft involved a 'switcheroo' distraction con, a judge was told, in which Stokes stole an £2,750 Omega watch from a jeweller whilst replacing it with a cheap replica he had in his pocket.
When quizzed he initially claimed he had no memory of the thefts due to previously being in a medically-induced coma following a heart attack and claimed he would 'never shop in an Aldi'. But he later admitted pawning the pensioner's wedding ring, confessing to police: "I feel tight for those two ladies."
In a statement the elderly victim said: ''I was in shock when this occurred as I initially thought I had just lost my handbag. But when the store explained it was stolen, I was aghast. I was on my own at the time and am concerned that he now knows of my address.
''I managed to get the locks of my home changed as I have been a victim of a burglary before. Losing my mother's wedding band was