One of two shoplifting brothers from Burnley must wear tag

One of two brothers who went shoplifting in Marks and Spencer and stole clothing worth £180 must wear a GPS tag.
Burnley Magistrates' CourtBurnley Magistrates' Court
Burnley Magistrates' Court

David Hodgson-Smith can now be tracked by the probation service, so they know what he is up to.

The move came after a court heard Hodgson-Smith was already on a 7pm to 7am curfew until July 15th but had absconded in the middle of the night.

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The defendant and his sibling and partner-in-crime, Peter Hodgson-Smith had been caught on CCTV as they struck in the Burnley store.

The town's magistrates were told Peter Hodgson-Smith (35) had already been dealt with for the incident and received a custodial sentence. His brother (34) this week also admitted the theft.

The court was told David Hodgson-Smith was identified on the footage by a police officer. He made full admissions in interview and said he was stealing to get money for himself. The defendant had 36 previous offences on his record and was locked up last November.

Mr Neil Cronin (defending) told the hearing he pleaded guilty at the very first opportunity. He was in breach of post-sentence supervision. Hodgson-Smith's record was "unenviable" and he had a number of theft offences on it.

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A probation officer said the defendant had made limited progress on the post-sentence supervision and his compliance had been poor. She said his offender manager suggested a GPS tag, so the service would be able to track where he was going and what he is doing.

The defendant, who, like his brother, lives at Hudson Street in Burnley, was given an eight week curfew, with the GPS tag, so, said the Bench, he can be located when he should be at probation appointments. It will run concurrently to his current order and ends on August 26th.

He was also ordered to pay £90 compensation.