A man has been sentenced after stealing a suitcase containing designer bags and jewellery worth £250,000 from St. Pancras International railway station, following a British Transport Police (BTP) investigation.
Mourad Aid, 41, and of Greatorex Street in Tower Hamlets, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing and was sentenced today (30 May) at Inner London Crown Court to three years imprisonment for theft and four months for handling stolen goods.
The court heard how at around 12.30 on Thursday 13 February 2025, the victim and her husband had arrived at St. Pancras and were taking their luggage to a car waiting on Pancras Road.
As they loaded their luggage into the car, they noticed that one of the cases had been taken.
The case contained several designer bags and jewellery including bracelets and rings of sentimental value, with the overall value estimated at in excess of £250,000.
The incident was reported to BTP, and detectives viewed CCTV footage that showed Aid walking into the station with the suitcase before walking out the other side.
Aid was quickly identified by officers and was arrested at Hatton Gardens jewellery district only four days later on Monday 17 February, by BTP plain clothes officers, before pleading guilty at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 19 February.
Investigating officer DC Michael Taylor said: “Aid acted brazenly and opportunistically to steal a suitcase from complete strangers, causing them considerable anxiety and worry over their belongings, so I am very happy with the result in this case.
“I want to thank all of the officers involved for their hard work which saw us identify, arrest, and charge Aid at a rapid pace. We take every report of crime extremely seriously, and I would like to remind the public that they can report crimes or concerns on the railway by texting 61016.”
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