Man jailed for luggage theft - Barrow

An opportunist thief who stole the luggage of another passenger has been jailed for 24 weeks.

Timothy Edward Leary, aged 45, of Millstone Avenue, Barrow-in-Furness, appeared before Barrow Magistrates on Thursday, 11 March and pleaded guilty to theft. He was sentenced to 24 weeks in jail and ordered to pay compensation of £1000, the value of the contents of the case he stole.

The court heard how the victim was returning from a trip to London on Sunday, 11 October last year. He noticed Leary and his wife sitting opposite the luggage rack when he went to get a charger from his case.

When he went to leave the train at Carlisle and collect his luggage, his Swiss gear case, containing clothing, his passport, work laptop and credit card was missing.

Using software to locate his laptop the victim traced the case to the Barrow area and BTP officers checked CCTV footage at the station.

It showed Leary and his wife leaving the station with the stolen case. When officers searched Leary’s address they found the case and its contents.

Investigating officer PC Geoffrey Daly-Tse said: “This was a brazen act of theft. Leary had clearly spotted the case on the train and wasted no time in taking it and leaving the station with it. What Leary wasn’t counting on was the extensive CCTV that covers the rail network both on trains and at stations.

“Hopefully spending time in jail will allow him time to reflect and prevent him from stealing other people’s hard earned possessions.”