Handbag thief banned from every shop in the UK

A prolific handbag thief has been banned from entering any shop in the country for two years after a judge branded him a "predator" who targeted women.

Baldev Ram was given the ban for his 120th offence – stealing a handbag from a shopper at Bentley Bridge Retail Park in Wednesfield.

The 48-year-old was told he cannot enter any retail premises in the UK under the tough two-year prohibited activity requirement.

District Judge Graham Wilkinson said: "You cannot set foot in a store. Not Sainsbury's, Not McDonalds, and you can't set foot in anywhere else.

"You are a predator. You target ladies' handbags. You wait until they are distracted and you steal from them.

"If I see you again in the next two years, except if it is in circumstances where you have made good progress, you will be going to prison for a long time."

The loss of the bag and contents cost the owner about £770 which Ram, from Farndale Avenue, has been ordered to pay back.

Mr Wilkinson said that Ram, who has had problems with drugs, was only interested in the cash the bags might contain.

But he said: "People lose keys, driving licences, credit cards and photographs of loved ones. You don't care about those."

Prosecuting at Wolverhampton Magistrates Court, Mrs Jenny Winzar, said Ram had 52 previous convictions for 119 offences, including 74 offences which were theft-related.

Ram was also handed a jail sentence suspended for two years and a four-month curfew for the theft in June this year. He will pay back the victim £10 a week.

There are only two exceptions to the ban– the Co-op chemist in Whitmore Reans and K Ram & Sons store in Newhampton.