Wanted shoplifter caught by police at hotel

Mark Bingley pictured leaving a shop with stolen items

A wanted shoplifter has been told when he’ll be sentenced for his crimes after police caught up with him at a city centre hotel.

Officers came across Mark Bingley in the reception of the Goldsmith Street-based Premier Inn while responding to an unrelated incident at the hotel.

Within minutes of arriving at the scene at 9pm on Sunday (13 April), those in attendance realised that Bingley was in fact linked to a series of thefts across Nottingham.

The 41-year-old had previously been identified and circulated as the lead suspect in nine separate shop thefts stretching back to last July but had managed to evade police since then.

That was despite an extensive amount of officer hours being invested to try and locate him.

Five different stores were targeted by Bingley between last summer and this March, with the thief making off with a range of items each time, including chocolates, alcohol and cosmetic products.

The information gathered about the thefts ensured Bingley was left with no choice but to plead guilty to the nine counts of shop theft he was charged with when he appeared at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court on Monday (14 April).

There he was told that he must return to the same court to be sentenced for his actions on 12 June, with Bingley, of no fixed address, having strict bail conditions imposed on him until then.

Sergeant Joanna Stanbridge, of Nottinghamshire Police, said:

“While attending an unrelated incident, the responding officers did a great job in quickly highlighting that the man in front of them was a wanted shoplifter.

“They then ensured he was detained promptly to prevent any risk of escape.

“Mark Bingley had been circulated for nine separate thefts in total, spanning back to last July, but had managed to evade police until the response officers involved caught up with him.

“Thanks to the thorough investigations and close work of other policing teams, they gathered the footage showing it was in fact Bingley stealing from these stores.

“He was then left with nowhere to turn when the charges were put to him, with an early guilty plea saving court time and taxpayers’ money.

“Shoplifting brings nothing but trouble to communities and hard-working businesses alike, so we’re pleased to have been able to set the wheels in motion for this particular offender to face the consequences of their actions.”