Two thieves have been convicted of stealing beer kegs worth £76,000
Husband and wife Toma and Diana Ciorba have been sentenced for handling stolen goods worth £76,000 after pleading guilty to the offence at Wood Green Crown Court.
Toma Ciorba was sentenced to 16 months in prison, while his wife was given a 12-month sentence which was suspended for two years. She has also been ordered to complete 100 hours of community service.
The sentence also included a recommendation that the pair, who are both Romanian nationals, be deported.
The pair were arrested after Metropolitan police officers received intelligence that beer kegs were being stored in shipping containers at two sites in north London. Officers recovered 888 stolen kegs from the two sites, each worth between £65 and £165.
Police worked closely with brewing industry watchdog Kegwatch during the operation, which led them to identify that some of the kegs were stolen from public houses in North London, Essex and Hertfordshire.
Commenting on the case, Brigid Simmonds, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) said: "We are grateful to the Metropolitan Police Service and other police forces across the country, who continue to focus on keg and cask theft in the course of their metal theft investigations.
"Keg theft is a serious problem for our industry. We will continue to work in close partnership with the police, other law enforcement and commercial partners to put a stop to it."
By Kerstin Kühn
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