Tesco shoplifter jailed after stealing £48k worth of cosmetics from supermarkets
An innocent shopper was accused of shoplifting when she was wrongly flagged by a facial recognition scanner
GB News
A woman has been jailed for 18 months after stealing £48,000 worth of cosmetics from Tesco stores across the UK as part of a criminal gang.
Cristina Curt, 27, of Russell Street, Peterborough, travelled the country shoplifting, regularly making off with thousands of pounds worth of stock in a single day.
The professional shoplifter targeted cosmetics and healthcare items, including wart and nail treatments, before being caught in King's Lynn last October.
Her largest single theft was valued at £3,341, with evidence showing she was involved in a total of 42 offences.
Cristina Curt has been jailed for 18 months
Norfolk Police
The majority of the charged thefts occurred in July 2024, accounting for almost £16,000 of the total stolen goods.
Curt admitted to 16 theft from shop offences initially, with a further 26 offences coming to light while she was on remand.
The criminal operation spanned 17 different police force areas between April and September 2024.
Her crime spree came to an end when she entered a Tesco store in King's Lynn on October 12, 2024, where she was recognised by a security guard.
Norfolk Police officers worked with Tesco to analyse CCTV footage and track her movements across the country.
Her crime spree came to an end when she entered a Tesco store in King's Lynn on October 12, 2024, where she was recognised by a security guard (stock pic)
GETTY IMAGESWhile in custody, Curt engaged with Op Converter, a programme that encourages offenders to confess other crimes, leading to the discovery of an additional 26 offences.
She was sentenced at Norwich Crown Court last Friday.
PC Alice Crome, who led the investigation, said: "Curt spent months travelling around the UK and was very much on the radar by the time she was caught in Norfolk.
"Thanks to the vigilance of the security guard on the day and the work of Tesco in analysing CCTV and circulating her image we have been able to drill down into her offending not just in Norfolk but across the country and bring her to justice."
Staff supervisor for Op Converter Duncan Etchells described the sums involved as "eye-watering."
Etchells added: "I hope this result shows Norfolk Police takes shoplifting offences extremely seriously. We are grateful to Tesco for their work in tracking her across the country.
"By travelling large distances between the stores Curt believed she could remain under the radar."
The 26 additional offences uncovered during the investigation amounted to approximately £32,000 of stolen goods.
These thefts occurred between April and September 2024, with Curt targeting multiple Tesco locations across the country.
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