A BRAZEN shoplifter, who targeted TK Maxx twice in a month, has vowed never to steal again.Tomas Stoskus admitted the offences at South East Suffolk Magistrates Court.

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IPSWICH: A brazen shoplifter, who targeted TK Maxx twice in a month, has vowed never to steal again.

Tomas Stoskus admitted the offences at South East Suffolk Magistrates Court.

The 25-year-old, of St Matthew's Street, Ipswich, was first spotted acting suspiciously in the store in the Buttermarket Shopping Centre by a security guard on December 4.

Gareth Davies, prosecuting, said: “At one stage he appeared to be rummaging around. The suspicion was he was trying to remove a tag from a pair of trainers. He left the store and the front of his jacket was bulging.”

Stoskus, a Lithuanian who lives in the UK with his partner and child, was pursued by the guard and started to run as soon as he was outside the shop, throwing his rucksack over a wall.

When he was finally caught by a street ranger, Stoskus jumped a high wall and disappeared while waiting for a police officer to arrive. The bag was later recovered and found to contain around �250 of goods and some tin foil.

But less than two weeks later, on December 17, Stoskus returned to the store, with the same security guard on duty, who watched him closely.

Mr Davies said: “The guard saw him select a pair of tracksuit bottoms which were then placed underneath a children's bag which was being pushed around the store.”

The thief was stopped outside the shop and the goods were recovered.

Speaking through an interpreter during the case on Wednesday, Stoskus said: “I do regret my actions. It will never happen again.”

He was fined �170, a �15 victim surcharge and ordered to pay �20 costs.