A “PROLIFIC” thief who stole £1,600 from a Hampshire shop has been arrested and is likely to return to prison, police told residents.

A man raided the Card Factory in Winchester before Christmas after breaking into a flat to steal a disc cutter, a Police and Communities Together (PACT) meeting heard.

The thief, thought to be behind several burglaries on city estates before Christmas, was arrested on Monday (January 11) and has admitted to the Card Factory theft, officers said.

PCSO Tim Wyld said the “prolific offender” was one of two burglars who had been on licence from Winchester Prison. The pair have been remanded and are likely to be locked up again, he said. Neither was named at the meeting.

Amplifon, a hearing aid shop in St George’s Street, was also raided over the festive period, the meeting heard, but the thieves ignored valuable equipment and stole useless display items.

“Thank god they left all their really expensive hearing equipment, thinking ‘it’s rubbish’,” PSCO Bernadetta Pawlowicz said.

Officers told how they visited businesses across the city over Christmas to ensure they were protecting their property.

“We’re going out trying to get into all the businesses when they’re open and trying to get to the places where the staff don’t look easily during the Christmas time, when it’s busy and people don’t take notice of their personal belongings,” PCSO Bernadetta Pawlowicz said.

“Most of them were pretty secure; even so, we gave them lots of crime prevention advice.”