Thief who stole dummies from babies in their prams is jailed

A homeless man who snatched dummies from babies has been jailed.

Josh Guilder snatched the soothers from the mouths of youngsters in Harlow, Essex, in four separate incidents between February and August last year.

On one occasion a child was also assaulted, said Essex Police.

Guilder, 23, was arrested on 15 August and charged with five counts of theft, three counts of common assault, and a public order offence.

He was convicted of all the offences at Colchester Magistrates’ Court in November and on Friday was sentenced to a year and two months in prison.

The court had previously heard that Guilder was living in a tent and had "never been weaned from dummies”.

“He uses a dummy to soothe himself,” said his lawyer Mary Buxton.

“He said he would take the dummy then go and sit in the tent and use the dummy,” she said, describing the thefts as “purely acquisitive”.

The four incidents happened between 10 February and 7 August 2023 in the Staple Tye Shopping Centre, Woodcroft, Parsloe Road and Cooks Spinney areas.

Ch Insp Paul Austin said: “I know these incidents caused concern in our community and I’m pleased we’ve been able to identify the person responsible and hold him accountable.

“It can never be acceptable that people in Harlow feel concerned about going about their daily lives or with their children and my officers have worked hard to get this result.

“I want to thank the community for their support in our investigation. We are committed to keeping you safe and ensuring you feel safe."

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