Joanna Warner, a 43-year-old former benefits claimant, has revealed how her shoplifting addiction led her to steal up to £140 worth of goods daily, even while receiving £1,700 a month in Personal Independent Payments and Universal Credit from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
Warner targeted major supermarkets such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Marks and Spencer, and Asda, focusing mainly on high-value items like steaks, legs of lamb, and large joints of beef. “If a leg of lamb cost £16, I’d sell it for £8 at the pub, where people would buy it quickly,” she explained. Alongside meat, she also stole bottles and cans of alcohol, often snatching entire boxes when store shelves were being restocked.
To avoid detection, Warner would conceal her stolen items with toilet paper and discreetly transfer them into reusable bags. “When I reached the exit, I’d pick up the bags and run,” she admitted. Clothes were not a target since they were harder to sell due to size and style issues.
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Despite being arrested in 2017 for stealing £284 worth of goods from an Asda in Accrington and facing multiple bans from local stores and town centres, Warner’s determination to steal continued. “The police said I was terrible at it, but I still got away with it most of the time,” she said.
Today, Joanna has turned her life around and is committed to helping others avoid the pitfalls that led her down a troubled path in the North West.