Suspected shoplifter found with knife

A 36-year-old woman has been jailed for having a knife in her bag. Samantha Abbott was arrested on Thursday (February 8) after she was found to be carrying the offensive weapon in her handbag whilst shopping in a Lidl supermarket. Miss Abbott, of no fixed abode, was today (February 9) sentenced to 4 weeks in custody after appearing in Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court. The court heard that the offensive weapon was found because the security guard had suspected she had been shoplifting and had initially thought that the knife had been stolen from Lidl. After finding what Miss Abbott described as a ‘kitchen knife’ in her bag the security guard in the supermarket called the police and Miss Abbott was arrested. Miss Abbott pleaded guilty, admitting that the knife was in her bag but claimed it did not belong to her. She said: “It belonged to my friend, but I did know it was there.” When the court asked her why she was carrying the knife she said: “For chopping food.” Miss Abbott denied that she was going to use the knife in any unlawful manner that could cause harm to a person. In the borough of Hillingdon, the latest statistics by UK Crime Stats  show that from January 2017 till December 2017 there were 28 incidents that involved the possession of a weapon.

Magistrate Anthea Abery, who sentenced Miss Abbott said: “We have no option but to impose custody, holding a knife is illegal whatever its purpose is.”