A London couple have been jailed for stealing over £48,000 of gold jewellery from across the country.
Vadar-ghimes Agafitei, and Zinca Agafitei, both 46, distracted members of staff at jewellery shops before stealing the goods.
CCTV footage in one case shows Mr Agafitei stuffing £15,000 of gold chains under his shirt in a shop in Thetford, Norfolk, before walking out.
The pair stole £48,000 of gold jewellery between May 14 and July 29 from locations in Warwickshire, Sussex, Wiltshire, Suffolk and Norfolk.
The couple who lived in Penge Road in east London, were sentenced to two years and three months after pleading guilty to three counts of theft and two counts of burglary at an earlier hearing.
Mr Agafitei also pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation.
Norfolk Police received a call from a victim who stated that a man and a woman had stolen £15,000 worth of gold chains from his shop in Thetford on July 29.
Officers investigated and discovered four other incidents in the country that had happened earlier in the year.
Police in Warwickshire were called to reports of a theft of a Rolex worth £11,500 from a display cabinet in a jewellery shop on May 14, when they distracted a staff member by asking to see another watch.
The pair also entered a jewellery shop in Sussex and requested to view a watch which was on display in the window on June 17.
While the staff member was talking to Mrs Agafitei her partner leant behind and stole a gold bracelet worth over £2,000 from a cabinet.
In a third incident on July 20 in Wiltshire the pair entered a jewellery shop asking to view bracelets.
This time Mr Agafitei purposefully knocked over a display stand. When tidying up the display, he stole more than 10 bracelets, worth more than £20,000.
In another case, the couple used an elderly woman in her 80s to withdraw £700.
The woman had travelled to Newmarket, Suffolk, to do some banking on July 25.
Mrs Agafitei is seen on CCTV to be watching her before making a call and is joined by Mr Agafitei.
He enters the bank and watches the victim enter her PIN at a cash machine.
The couple both follow the victim into a shop and Mrs Agafitei shows the victim an item of clothing.
A short while later, Mr Agafitei uses the victim’s card at a cash machine and makes two withdrawals, totalling £700.
Police obtained CCTV footage from all five offences and Norfolk officers identified the suspects and their vehicles, tracking them to the Cheshire area.
They intercepted the suspect’s vehicle on the M6 on October 17 where they were arrested and transported to King’s Lynn Police Investigation Centre for questioning.
They were later charged and remanded into custody.
The pair appeared at Norwich Crown Court and were both sentenced to two years and three months in prison on December 16.
Sgt Gary Morris from the Breckland District Crime Unit said: “This was a complex case where the offenders have travelled far and wide, often changing vehicles and locations to try and avoid detection.
“My thanks go out to the investigating officer, PC Luke Brown, along with the other forces involved.
“As a result of their efforts, the pair have been caught and will now serve custodial sentences.
“I am hopeful this case demonstrates that Norfolk is not an easy target, and anyone travelling to this county to commit crime will be dealt with robustly.”
