Eight Romanian couriers in the United Kingdom were sentenced to more than 30 years imprisonment after stealing parcels worth EUR 1 million and selling them online. Three of the suspects managed to flee to Romania and are now being sought.
The former couriers operated together between September 2022 and February 2023 in Birmingham. Using their employee access to the company warehouses, they relabeled certain expensive items, such as electric bicycles, laptops, and televisions, and sent them to addresses in the UK belonging to acquaintances or relatives. Some even involved their parents in the fraud.
The stolen goods were then shipped to Romania or sold online, according to the Warwickshire police.
The offences came to light after a high number of claims were made by business customers of the courier company about their items not being delivered. The company investigated and discovered the offending, intercepting a few parcels which had been over-labelled. 11 addresses were identified which linked to those involved.
British police conducted searches at these addresses, managing to recover only a small portion of the stolen goods, along with GBP 37,000 in cash. Pictures from a Warwickshire Police raid showed boxes filled with new goods including laptops and trainers.
“This group may have thought they were acting under the radar using their ‘sophisticated’ plan to over-label items, but unfortunately for them, we were able to investigate their actions and they will now spend time in prison,” said detective constable Alison Roberts.
The eight were sentenced to prison, most of them with immediate execution, while three others, namely Marius Marin, Toma Radu and Giorcaev Radu, were sentenced in absentia after fleeing to Romania.
(Photo source: Warwickshire police)
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