Paul Thornton, of Rothbury Road, led police and security guards on a chase along Whitby's seafront before they trapped him
A serial razor thief swiped hundreds of pounds worth of blades - before hurling them into the North Sea after police cornered him.
Paul Thornton was spotted on CCTV pinching £255 worth of blades from Whitby’s Boots store, before fleeing.
With his loot concealed in a bag, Thornton, of Rothbury Road in Berwick Hills, Middlesbrough, led police and security guards on a chase along Whitby’s seafront before they trapped him.
Desperate to evade capture and with nowhere to run, he flung the bag into the sea.
However, police managed to fish the razors out of the water, and Thornton appeared at Scarborough Magistrates’ Court - where even his own solicitor admitted the theft was “incompetently” carried out.
At that hearing, the court heard how Thornton had fallen on hard times in Middlesbrough, and had been staying on a friend’s sofa in Whitby.
The 35-year-old, who has previous convictions for stealing razors and dummy razors, had been trying to keep out of trouble.
But his solicitor Shaun Greenan admitted that on February 27, Thornton, who also had a conviction for stealing a tube of Pringle socks, “succumbed to temptation”.
In mitigation, Mr Greenan said that his client had recently been given £1,500 in backdated Employment and Support Allowance that had helped him clear some debts, and had been making progress with help for mental health problems.
And he added: “He’s extremely grateful for the help he’s been given and for the first time in many years his future is looking positive.”
Thornton was ordered to pay £60 compensation and slapped with a curfew between 5pm and noon.
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