A wanted thief in Nottinghamshire who managed to evade police for months has finally been locked up.
Ryan Monte was eventually caught by officers in February, having committed a series of shop thefts in the months prior.
The 38-year-old was responsible for stealing from the same Wollaton store seven separate times. Bottles of alcohol were at the top of his shopping list when he went into the Co-op in Lambourne Drive.
While most of his shoplifting was limited to last December, he also helped himself to items in August and September, Nottinghamshire Police said.
Four other shops - in Bulwell, Kimberley, Eastwood and Hucknall - were also hit by Monte, taking his shop theft total up to 11.
That wasn’t the end to his offending though, with the thief also committing a burglary in the Hucknall area in May 2024. On that occasion, he broke into a depot, before making off with more than £3,500 worth of electrical goods.
Monte was also responsible for stealing a woman’s handbag in June 2025, taking his total number of offences to 13.
But the elusive thief’s luck would eventually run out this February, within days of a wanted appeal being released to track him down.
Following the appeal, a mixture of operational support and response officers managed to locate him and place him under arrest.
Monte, from nearby Bulwell, would go on to be charged with 11 shop thefts, one burglary and one theft from a person. Having pleaded guilty to each one, he was sentenced for his crimes at Nottingham Crown Court on Monday this week (13 April), where he was jailed for two years and four months.
Inspector Gordon Fenwick, neighbourhood inspector for the City West, said: “Monte showed a complete disregard for the law when he chose to steal over and over again.
“His shoplifting wasn’t isolated but took place over several weeks and saw him steal from five shops, including one of our Wollaton stores, which he targeted repeatedly.
“We elected to put out a wanted appeal earlier this year, which thankfully helped lead to his capture a few days later and we’re all pleased to see he’s now been sentenced for his actions.”
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