Indian-origin woman makes ₹5 crore through shoplifting in England and Wales, sentenced to 10 years in jail

An Indian-origin woman made ₹5 crore through shoplifting in England and Wales for over four years. She has been sentenced to 10 years in jail.

An Indian-origin woman named Narinder Kaur has been jailed for 10 years after she shoplifted throughout stores in England and Wales and claimed refunds on them. According to reports, the 54-year-old woman shoplifted from high street stores for over four years and made over ₹5 crore.

The Indian-origin woman's fraudulent activities extended beyond shoplifting. (Representative image)

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Kaur, who worked under 17 different identities, was found guilty of 26 counts of fraud, money laundering and preventing the course of justice, as per a report by The Guardian.

Her modus operandi involved returning stolen goods for cash refunds, netting her more than half a million pounds. Between July 2015 and September 2019, she visited stores such as Boots, House of Fraser, Monsoon, and Homebase in towns and cities such as Cardiff, Oxford, Winchester, Exeter, and Bath.

Kaur’s fraudulent activities extended beyond shoplifting. She also attempted to swindle Wiltshire Council out of £7,400 (approximately ₹8 lakh) by making a payment using stolen credit card details. She then brazenly contacted the council to demand a refund for an inflated amount she claimed to have accidentally paid.

Kaur first garnered attention in 2016 for her fraudulent activities. A joint investigation by Wiltshire and West Mercia police forces was initiated in 2020 to address the growing concerns. However, this did not deter Kaur from continuing her shoplifting spree and subsequent refund scams.

The police arrested her in October 2020 after she shoplifted and tried the refund scam at a Swindon retail park.

Even after being granted bail, Kaur blatantly disregarded the law by continuing her criminal activities. She was subsequently rearrested in 2021 for attempting to return stolen goods at Asda stores in Melksham and Swindon.

“Kaur is a calculated individual who committed offences across the country, dishonestly claiming refunds on items she had stolen. She showed no remorse. She is, without doubt, the most dishonest person I’ve ever dealt with in 40 years of policing,” Steve Tristram, a fraud investigator from West Mercia police’s economic crime unit, told The Guardian.