Serial shoplifter goes on crime spree in London day after early release from HMP Wandsworth

A serial shoplifter committed a series of crimes starting the day after he was released early from a London prison.

Michael Bogle, 38, from Brent, who was assessed as a “high risk offender”, was captured on CCTV stealing from two supermarkets in north west London within 24 hours of being freed last Thursday from HMP Wandsworth.

The former bus driver allegedly entered a Sainsburys Local in Willesden three times between 6pm and 8.45pm from which he is barred under a criminal behaviour order ban.

After being arrested, he was later said to have pleaded guilty to four shoplifting offences of stealing laundry detergent worth a total of £142.35 between Thursday October 1st and Monday the 5th from Tesco in Wembley.

He was also believed to have been charged with a commercial burglary and breaching court orders before being returned to prison.

Michael Bogle was released from HMP Wandsworth last week

Jeremy Selwyn

He reportedly had 16 previous convictions and to have been linked to more than 100 investigations.

Detective Chief Superintendent Luke Williams, borough commander for Barnet, Brent and Harrow was so concerned about the case that he has raised the matter with local MPs and councillors.

Bogle was released from the south west London prison last Thursday where he had served 78 days in prison after breaching a 32-week suspended sentence for shoplifting.

Asked at the time for his message to Andy Burnham, Bogle said: “Keep the early release going. It’s good.”

He added that conditions inside the prison are “awful”, with inmates locked up for around 23 hours a day.

DCS Williams warned of other similar cases in the capital.

He stressed that communities were being put at risk by the early release of inmates.

Highlighting court backlogs amid the struggling criminal justice system, he told how victims were increasingly likely to withdraw from it rather than pursue cases.

In his letter, DCS Williams said: “The Met has repeatedly raised concerns that placing more criminals within the community comes with significant risks to victims and places more costs onto policing.

“In this latest example, last Thursday, a prolific shoplifter and registered sex offender was released as part of this scheme from HMP Wandsworth.

“He was serving a sentence for shoplifting and breaching his criminal behaviour order and has subsequently been arrested following further offending within north-west London.”

The senior Scotland Yard officer added: “This individual had been assessed as a high-risk offender by the Probation Service and had 16 previous convictions linked to more than 100 investigations, including multiple thefts, criminal damage and an incident of indecent exposure.

“While I am sure it is not surprising that someone with this history went on to reoffend, the speed with which he did so, and the impact on frontline policing, is astonishing.

“Just one day after his release, he was captured on CCTV stealing from two supermarkets in north-west London.

“When local neighbourhood officers visited the stores, staff reported that he had continued shoplifting throughout the weekend.”

HMP Wandsworth

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A team of officers spent an entire day locating the man and bringing him back into custody, where he was charged with four counts of shoplifting, breaching court orders and commercial burglary.

He required constant observation while in custody.

Local police officers gathered CCTV evidence and witness statements to build a case against him.

The man subsequently pleaded guilty and is now back in jail.

He was also recalled to prison by the Probation Service.

DCS Williams added: “The concerning nature of the Early Release Scheme in this case was a known prolific offender being put back into the community, only to immediately re-offend.

“Not only does this place communities at risk but puts demand straight back into policing who must arrest, investigate and put the individual into custody.

“In this case, 27 officer hours were needed, leading to a cost of £1,887.”

He added “Furthermore, this is not just a localised issue with similar cases occurring across London, where people are released, only for their cycle of offending to immediately start again.

“I, along with other officers from across the Met are concerned this will only get worse as more people are released early.”

The Government has faced criticism over the early release scheme, with critics saying it was inevitable some criminals would reoffend.

“There seems to be a grim inevitability about prolific offenders let out early going on to start up their criminal activities once again.

“The speed with which this occurred in this instance is truly shocking.”

Ealing North MP James Murray

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On the morning of its launch last Thursday, Treasury minister James Murray, MP for Ealing North, said: "I know the level of concern and maybe anger will be intense, and it's worth me making clear that this is not a situation where there is any good solution - there's just a series of very difficult choices we've got to take."

A Government spokesperson said:“ We inherited a prison system on the brink of collapse.

“If we had failed to act, the police would have been forced to halt arrests, putting communities at untold risk.“