Man jailed for stealing £100k worth of alcohol from Tesco and Sainsbury's in Surrey shoplifting spree
A man has been jailed after being convicted of stealing nearly £100,000 worth of alcohol from supermarkets across the UK as part of a large-scale organised crime group.
Nicolae Budencea, 37, from Enfield, London, was sentenced to 32 months and two weeks at Guildford Crown Court on 10 June after pleading guilty to 19 counts of conspiracy to commit theft (shoplifting). He had been on remand since he was charged.
Budencea was part of an organised crime group (OCG) that targeted Tesco and Sainsbury’s stores across Surrey and other parts of the country between October 2022 and November 2024. The group stole between £500 and £7,000 worth of alcohol in each offence, often visiting the same store multiple times.
He was caught on CCTV acting as a lookout during the thefts, and investigators found phone messages between members of the group identifying where security staff were located.
According to police, Budencea took part in thefts totalling nearly £100,000, although the wider group is believed to have been responsible for stealing approximately £495,000 worth of alcohol across the UK.
Officers worked closely with the heads of security at Tesco and Sainsbury’s, who helped link Budencea to a further 34 offences that were taken into consideration at sentencing.
PC Lacey, the investigating officer, said: “The successful outcome in court is the result of a joint partnership that was formed between the neighbourhood policing investigation team from Staines-upon-Thames, Tesco and Sainsbury's, alongside Op Opal, the national intelligence unit focused on serious organised acquisitive crime (SOAC).”
“The investigation involved viewing hours of CCTV and numerous statements being taken which provided overwhelming evidence to prove the part that Budencea played in this prolific shoplifting OCG.
“The sentence he received highlights our determination to crack down on shoplifting and that this type of crime will not be tolerated.”
The offences Budencea was directly involved in included thefts from Tesco stores in Stanwell, Reigate, Addlestone, Ashford, Towbridge, Coventry, Bedworth, Leicester, Borehamwood, Crewe, Bradford, Bicester, Didcot, Watford, and Lakeside.
Some of the largest thefts included £8,500 stolen from Ashford in March 2023 and over £5,000 worth of alcohol taken from Watford in April 2024.