Man who threatened to 'stab up' staff after being caught shoplifting in Black Country stores is jailed
A West Bromwich man who threatened staff when going on a shoplifting spree at stores around the Black Country has been jailed.
Hopeton Falconer, aged 58, carried out 18 shoplifting offences between November 2024 and June 2025 Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.
Often he would take random items, not usually of large value including from Farmfoods Smethwick when he took £60 worth of meat and dishwasher tablets and made his escape on a push bike, abusing security staff who tried to stop him.
On January 15 2025 Falconer, of Polar Grove, West Bromwich, stole items from the Co-Op in Tipton and when challenged outside by security staff again became abusive, threatening them with the broken neck of a wine bottle which he clenched in his hand, saying: "I'll stab you up."
A victim impact statement from one of the staff was read out to the court, and told of the trauma they had faced in the incident.
The court heard Falconer, who had 42 previous theft-related convictions, had already pleaded guilty to 18 offences and one of possession of a Class A drug, namely crack cocaine, and had made good progress in prison.
But jailing him for 35 weeks, recorder William Ellis said in each of the shoplifting cases he had produced a 'significant threat or even use of force often using random objects which had caused the people they were aimed at significant distress and fear.'
