Pet shop fish tank thief caught when he returned to buy goldfish

A thief who stole a fish tank from a pet store was caught when he returned to buy a goldfish. When staff at Pets at Home on Westgate Retail Park in Wakefield, Yorkshire, asked hapless Nigel Darren Ball which type of tank he had, Ball pointed to one near the shelf he stole from.

He then filled out his name and address and was arrested later. Ball, 52, of Peacock, Wakefield, told police: “I went to buy some goldfish but had to fill out a form with my details on it. That’s what got me.” Wakefield magistrates heard how Ball went to the store at 5.10pm on May 29 and stole a large hexagonal fish tank while no one was looking.



Prosecutor Rory Byrne said: “As brazen as anything he lifted the fish tank off the shelf, as big as it is, and simply walked out of the store. Some sight it must have been, he walks from the retail park holding an umbrella and a fish tank, and walks as far as the Peacock Estate. No one saw it at the time.”

The court heard how a £50 fish tank was later missing. Staff then checked CCTV and realised there had been a theft. Ball admitted theft. Mike Devlin, mitigating, said Ball had earlier dropped and smashed his children’s fish tank while cleaning it. He went looking for a replacement but saw how much they cost and ended up stealing one. Sentencing was adjourned until next month.