Brazen shoplifter steals entire Mini Eggs display from Tesco in £4,000 stealing spree

A man has been jailed following a shoplifting rampage that saw him swipe an entire display of Mini Eggs from a Tesco supermarket. Ashley Daley, 39, hit shops across Cardiff, Taff's Well, Merthyr Tydfil, Chepstow and Caldicot, racking up £4,000 in losses. He launched into a prolific wave of thefts spanning three weeks throughout south Wales and Gwent, repeatedly targeting supermarkets "in a planned manner, by attending a variety of different locations", a South Wales Police spokesperson said. He made no attempt to conceal his identity, with many of his crimes captured on camera. The spokesperson added: "Daley did not take any efforts to hide his identity, boldly walking into stores and filling up bags with meat, Easter eggs and alcohol, which amounted to a high loss for the businesses. "In one case he attended a store stealing an entire display of Mini Eggs, making no effort to mask his wrongdoing, with all of these incidents being captured on CCTV." Officers stopped Daley in a vehicle on February 21, moments after he had carried out a theft. When arrested, a kitchen knife was discovered on him, reports Wales Online . During his police interview, Daley appeared irritated, planting his hands in his tracksuit bottoms and answering "no comment" to questions about his offending. Daley pleaded guilty to 12 offences of theft, one of attempted theft, and one of possession of a bladed article. He has been imprisoned for four months. On occasion, store CCTV footage appeared to show Daley being aided by a female accomplice, although South Wales Police has yet to confirm details of any investigation into her involvement. The investigating officer, Detective Constable Warriner, revealed that Daley had been engaged in shoplifting across the West Midlands as well as Wales. "Daley is a prolific offender who was brazen in his actions across the country, showing a clear disregard for the law and believing himself above it," said DC Warriner. "Shoplifting is not a victimless crime, and offenders like Daley have a big financial impact on businesses, and emotional impact on those who work there. Daley would have continued targeting businesses across the UK and I am glad to see that he has now been prevented from doing so."