A SHOPLIFTER caught after a police chase through the streets of Grays has walked away from court with a conditional discharge.

William Birch, 27, was apprehended by police on the Seabrook Rise estate after Neighbourhood Policing officers on patrol in Grays responded to an alert after he stole alcohol from a shop on Southend Road.

He was arrested at 7pm on Sunday, 31 May within 30 minutes of police receiving the call.

Birch, of Buckles Lane, South Ockendon, was later charged. He admitted the offence and was sentenced at Southend Magistrates' Court on 2 June to a six-month conditional discharge.

A police statement after his sentence said: "We take shop theft seriously. It affects local businesses, staff and the community, and we will act quickly to catch those responsible."