Police chief found not guilty of stealing cosmetics
A police chief inspector stood accused of stealing £12.72 in make-up on her lunch hour was found not guilty in court.
Kim Molloy was on trial for helping herself to a tin of Max Factor Age Renewal Foundation worth just £12.72 from a Tesco store, with the prosecution claiming that the woman had been cunning and deceptive in hiding the product in her shopping trolley while paying for other items before eventually leaving the store.
However, the judge conducting the hearing stopped the trial upon viewing CCTV footage of the incident – ruling that it was a simple matter of forgetfulness. After the verdict was read by Judge Peter Joyce, who also commented that there wasn’t any evidence of any dishonesty, Mrs Molloy, who is 45 years of age, wept with joy.
Molloy is a chief inspector for Nottinghamshire Police and was arrested then charged when an attentive CCTV operator at a Top Valley Tesco Extra branch spotted that she had paid for all of the items in her trolley except the foundation, which could be seen under a bag.
When confronted, she told staff present when the ‘theft’ occurred in November last year that she wouldn’t be so stupid as to risk her job for a £12 can of foundation. After she was arrested however, she conceded that she obviously had left the cosmetics in her trolley and that she was convinced beforehand that she had taken everything out.
As she has now been cleared Mrs Malloy will probably resume the role that she had been suspended from back in March.