Harwich: Man jailed for a string of shop burglaries and thefts

A Harwich man has been jailed for 32 months for a string of commercial burglaries and shop thefts in the town.

Luke Harvey 30, of Valley Road, was sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court on 4 October 2024.

He appeared before Chelmsford magistrates on two separate occasions In June, when he admitted to committing six commercial burglaries between 19 April and 3 June 2024 and 13 shop thefts across Harwich between 31 March and 9 June 2024.

Sergeant Vanessa Moss, of Harwich Community Policing Team, said after the case:

“Harvey is a prolific offender and committed the burglaries and shop thefts to fund his drug habit.
“He broke into several independent businesses and stole cash and charity boxes as well as goods, causing harm and distress to the owners. It’s not just what he stole, it’s the damage he caused which meant that the owners not only had to pay for repairs but also lost business because they had to close their shops while the damage was put right.
“Harvey also stole food and groceries from several stores in the town. Again, although the value of goods stolen on each occasion was small, often less than £50, it all adds up and small businesses can ill-afford the losses.”

Harvey was jailed for 30 months for each burglary, to run concurrently to each other, and two months for each shop theft, again, to run concurrently with each other but consecutively to the total sentence for the burglaries, making a total of 32 months imprisonment.

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