Security blocks thief’s ‘Swift’ exit
As Taylor Swift sang: “You should’ve said ‘No’, you should’ve gone home, You should’ve thought twice ‘fore you let it all go.”
She might have been offering advice to Addington teenager Jackson Trent Lewis who nearly “kidnapped” a life-sized cardboard cut-out of the pop princess from outside a shoe store in Westfield Riccarton.
Lewis, a 19-year-old apprentice coachbuilder, today pleaded guilty in the Christchurch District Court to a charge of stealing the cut-out, the property of Hannah’s shoe store, on June 27.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Paul Scott said Lewis “decamped” with the cut-out about 4pm and ran through the mall before mall security staff caught him.
He told police: “I took it because my mate loves Taylor Swift.”
The cut-out was worth between $400 and $500.
Sergeant Scott said Lewis was not eligible for diversion because he had three previous convictions and had had several police warnings.
Duty lawyer David Stringer said Lewis regretted his actions. He was already paying off fines totalling $2500 at $20 a week.
Judge Alistair Garland said it was “a silly thing to do, but you have pleaded guilty and acknowledged your responsibility”.
He imposed a fine of $200 plus court costs of $130 and ordered that Lewis would now pay off his fines at $50 a week.
The court did not consider the question of whether there should be a victim impact statement from Miss Swift, or whether she actually is in New Zealand at the moment.
Category: News
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