A man has been jailed after stealing hundreds of pounds of meat, coffee and other items were stolen from a Co-Op.

Between February 14 and 24, James Durber stole hundreds of pounds worth of items from the Co-Op on Highlands Road, Fareham.

Officers from Fareham’s Neighbourhood Policing Team carried out enquiries and charged Durber of Hayes Close.

He faced eight shoplifting offences charges and one of using threatening, abusive or insulting words to cause harassment, alarm, or distress - this relates to a shop worker at the store.

Appearing at Portsmouth Magistrates Court on Monday, he admitted the offences and was jailed for 12 weeks for the shoplifting offences and a further four weeks for the offence against a shop worker.

Chief Inspector Chris Spellerberg said: “Shoplifting is not a victimless offence.

"We recognise that repeat shoplifting in particular, creates an environment of fear for many retail workers. As a result, they may feel unsafe and unprotected in their own workplaces.

"In addition store owners losing products to thieves, means that they not only lose the profit margin, but the entire value of the product. This in turn will impact prices for consumers.

“The Neighbourhood Policing Team is continuing to focus on retail crime across the district - in areas like Portchester, Locks Heath, and Fareham itself – so that we can address the concerns of the local community and retailers that serve them”.