Former DWP manager caught stealing trolley of champagne worth £253 from Waitrose

A former civil servant caught stealing £253 worth of luxury champagne from Waitrose has been found guilty of theft.

Talina Llewellyn, 55, loaded her trolley with bottles of Laurent Perrier, Lanson rose champagne and Jackson Estate pinot noir wine while at the store in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan.

Staff then saw her placing the bottles into the boot of her Lexus car, Swansea Crown Court heard.

Llewellyn had apparently been ‘on the radar’ of staff after earlier visits to the store, and manager Rachel Parsons stood in the foyer for up to 15 minutes watching her in the plant section.

But when Ms Parsons got distracted by a customer, Llewellyn disappeared and was only seen again when loading up her car in the car park.

The court heard staff took her into an office inside the store, where they then phoned the police.

Llewellyn, who was a former manager for the Department for Work and Pensions, faced a two-day trial over the theft, which took place on February 5 this year.

She claimed she had gone to her car to get tonic water because she was thirsty – a side effect of the medication she was taking.

The court heard she left her job at the civil service, where she worked for 30 years, after being diagnosed with a brain tumour, for which she is still receiving treatment.

Llewellyn, of Cowbridge, was found guilty of theft at Swansea Crown Court.

She has a previous police penalty notice for shoplifting from 2013.

Judge Paul Thomas QC fined her £400 and ordered her to pay £2,800 prosecution costs.

He said: ‘You felt you would have a better chance of persuading a jury than a bench of magistrates.’