Shop Thief Nabbed at Gatwick with £2,000 Haul in Hand
A brazen shoplifter tried to sneak off with over £2,000 worth of duty free goods at London Gatwick Airport – but got caught just before takeoff.
Caught Red-Handed Before Flight to Seville
Guillermo Vargas, 30, was spotted trying on sunglasses in the duty free shop before walking out without paying. Airport security quickly alerted police, who intercepted him at the departure gate.
Vargas, from Canning Town, London, was dragged off the plane heading to Seville and admitted stealing sunglasses and a bottle of booze. A search revealed he was carrying ten pairs of sunglasses, two bottles of fragrance, a Real Madrid football shirt, a box of headphones – plus a staggering £8,000 in cash.
Sentenced to 300 Hours Unpaid Work
At Crawley Magistrates’ Court on October 16, Vargas pleaded guilty to four counts of theft. The court heard the incident happened just after 11pm on September 28, with CCTV footage showing him stuffing items into his bag without paying.
He was sentenced to 300 hours of unpaid work, ordered to pay £85 in costs and a £114 surcharge.
Detective Sergeant Ian Warncken from Gatwick CID said: “Vargas must have thought he had got away as he took his seat on the aircraft. But we work in partnership with retailers and with London Gatwick Airport to ensure that he was stopped and arrested. We are determined to prevent shop thefts which cause concern to communities and can be very stressful for the public and staff working in shops. Vargas has now been sentenced, and it demonstrates that we will pursue prosecutions against offenders.”
