A knickers thief was caught with a stash of 860 pairs of women’s underwear he had stolen from washing lines, magistrates were told.<\/p>\n
Farmer Geoffrey Wilde, 48, a married father-of-five, took the undergarments over a two-year period.<\/p>\n
He was given a six-month nighttime curfew by the court.
When he was finally arrested police discovered he was wearing a pair of blue knickers when they asked him to change his clothes.<\/p>\n
Wilde, who was held after being spotted in a passageway acting suspiciously in Welshpool, Powys, admitted that he needed help when interviewed by officers.<\/p>\n
A homeowner called police after the well-respected father was seen carrying a torch and three pairs of women’s underwear.<\/p>\n
Magistrates were told that the haul of knickers and bras – some of which belonged to elderly women – were found during a search of his home.<\/p>\n
Helen Tench, prosecuting, told Welshpool magistrates: ‘In interview he said “I need help. I shouldn\u2019t be doing what I\u2019m doing. I don\u2019t know why I\u2019m doing it\u2019.”<\/p>\n
Wilde admitted 18 counts of theft at an earlier hearing.
Paul Inns, defending, said that Wilde made a full admission and had even helped police in matters that were above and beyond what they were investigating.<\/p>\n
‘He is remorseful and ashamed of his behaviour, not only for himself, but for the impact of his behaviour on his family,’ said Mr Inns.<\/p>\n
‘He is well thought of in his community and the loss of his good character may be viewed as punishment by some.<\/p>\n
‘This is a gentleman who has suffered a significant fall from grace.’
Mr Inns said that there was an underlying psychological disorder surrounding Wilde\u2019s behaviour.<\/p>\n
Chairman of the bench David Peate told Wilde: ‘We are aware, and I\u2019m sure you are too, of the seriousness of these offences. We are anxious to ensure that this behaviour ceases. It\u2019s important to protect the public.<\/p>\n
‘What we are doing is giving you the maximum which is available to us, and the best for you too. This is an opportunity to try to put a stop to all of this because if you don\u2019t, I don\u2019t need to say what will happen.’<\/p>\n
Wilde was given a three-year community order with three requirements.
He will have 36 months of supervision with a male support officer and will attend a community sex offender programme.<\/p>\n
He was placed under a curfew for six months and must stay at home between 6pm and 6am. <\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A knickers thief was caught with a stash of 860 pairs of women’s underwear he had stolen from washing lines, magistrates were told. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14325","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard"],"yoast_head":"\n