South Oxhey shoplifter jailed as police crackdown on town centre crime

Dear Resident

A prolific shoplifter in Three Rivers has been jailed after police officers found her hiding under a bed in her efforts to evade them.

Jenna Harris, aged 55, of Lincoln Drive in South Oxhey, was yesterday (Wednesday 16 July) sentenced to 10 weeks imprisonment at Hatfield Magistrates’ Court, after pleading guilty to theft from a shop and breach of a Criminal Behaviour Order (CBO).

The sentencing comes after Harris was arrested late on Monday night (14 July) in connection with an incident at Lidl in Prestwick Road on Tuesday 10 June, where several food items were stolen from the supermarket.

Harris had previously been handed a CBO, the terms of which banned her from entering the supermarket – as well as others in the area.

Following this incident, Harris became wanted by police. Late on Monday night (14 July) she was located at an address in South Oxhey, hiding under a bed in a bid to escape officers from Team 3 Intervention.

She was swiftly arrested, taken into custody, charged and remanded before her court appearance yesterday (16 July).

Three Rivers’ Chief Inspector Kio Bozorgi said: “Harris’ arrest and charge is part of our mission to crackdown on retail crime in our town centres. Shoplifting causes great harm to our economy and makes our local businesses’ lives a misery. 

“They have been raising concerns with us about these crimes, and rightly so, but we hope they know that our persistence in tracking Harris down is testament to our commitment in making our town centres safer places.

“Harris chose to completely flout the terms of her CBO and continue her crime spree, but this has now caught up with her thanks to the tenacity of my officers. I hope this serves as a warning to other criminals who think Three Rivers is an easy target; we will catch up with you, and there will be consequences for your actions.”

This summer, police in Hertfordshire are sharpening their focus on town centre crime and anti-social behaviour in line with the national initiative led by the Home Office (opens in new window). The aim is to prevent crime and antisocial behaviour in town centres and ensure visible, meaningful consequences for those responsible.

You can report crime and anti-social behaviour online at herts.police.uk/report, speak to an operator in our Force Communications Room via our online web chat at herts.police.uk/contact or call the non-emergency number 101.

Alternatively, you can stay 100% anonymous by contacting the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or via their untraceable online form at crimestoppers-uk.org.

Join our community messaging platform Herts Connected at hertsconnected.co.uk and select ‘police’ when you sign up to receive free local messages.  You can also choose to hear from other agencies. 

Shoplifter arrested, charged and jailed as police crackdown on town centre crime – South Oxhey | Hertfordshire Constabulary