A foreign national has said he wants to stay in the UK following a jail sentence for theft a day after he landed in the country. Leonard-Valter Tudor, 20, lined a bag with foil to try and avoid detectors at TK Maxx in Nottingham on Saturday – just hours after arriving in Britain.
An accomplice got away but he was arrested for attempted theft after security staff spotted him and was hauled before the courts on Monday. Prosecutor Sanjay Jerath said: ‘In interview, the defendant said he landed in the country the day before.
He went to an address in Doncaster intending to find some work. ‘He was approached by another Romanian man he doesn’t know. There was the suggestion of employment in Nottingham of taking items from a shop and accepts he was opening bags and taking items.
‘He had a foil lined bag and takes full responsibility for his action.’ Tudor, who was helped by a Romanian interpreter in court, admitted theft of £508 worth of goods and was sent to a young offenders’ institution for 16 weeks. Judge Leo Pyle told him: ‘The sentence should be a deterrent in your particular case.’ Neil O’Sullivan, mitigating, said Tudor became a father for the first time two weeks ago. He had the prospect of work in South Yorkshire and came to stay with a friend in the Doncaster area. Mr O’Sullivan said: ‘Simply the promise of money led him to commit these offences. As one can imagine, he had no income whatsoever as he only landed on Friday. ‘He was detained straight away by security staff. All the items were recovered. ‘This was an enterprise he entered into with some reluctance, it is fair to say. In some ways, it was borne out of necessity.’ He said Tudor admitted the offences immediately and planned to return to South Yorkshire if released. Mr O’Sullivan added: ‘He tells me the prospect of work is a genuine one and is aimed simply to provide for his family in future.’
Source: Metro.co.uk
