A prolific thief that stole from a number rof shops in towns across Suffolk, including Felixstowe, has been sent to prison.

Thomas Ball of Clifford Road in Ipswich was jailed for 22 weeks after he pleaded guilty at Ipswich Magistrates Court on Thursday, 30 June to theft.

It follows an incident on 13 January this year where he stole multiple model railway items, including two train sets, with an estimated total value of £419 from Orwell Model Railways in Ipswich.

During the investigation, Ball chose to work with the Operation Converter team with a further 17 offences of theft taken into consideration. These took place from 26 December 2021 to 1 June 2022.

A variety of items were stolen from retail stores across the county including Hadleigh, Ipswich, Sudbury, Aldeburgh and Felixstowe amounting to more than £2,000 worth of goods. Items stolen included five Barbour jackets form a store in Aldeburgh and two pond pumps from Sudbury.

Duncan Etchells of the Op Converter team said: "Ball was very contrite when we put these offences to him and he will have some time away in jail to reflect on his actions and the impact it had on his victims

"It's a sad reflection of his circumstances that he felt the need to commit all these offences after he lost his job and he stated although he knew the impact his offending would have on the retail outlets involved he felt it was better than stealing from individuals.

"I hope he will reflect on his actions and seek any support he can to ensure he doesn't reoffend, we'll certainly refer him to partner agencies to encourage this. However, the Police also have a responsibility to not only investigate and detect crime but protect the community from people like Ball who choose to break the law."

Operation Converter is an initiative aimed at encouraging offenders to admit their crimes. This has benefits for all – police are able to give victims some peace of mind that an offender has been caught for the burglary of their home or the theft of their property and the individual has the opportunity to clear their slate, so they can have a fresh start when they are released from prison, without the possibility they will later be traced for a further offence. Offenders have to give sufficient detail for officers to be sure they have committed the crime and these offences are then 'taken into consideration' at sentencing.