Shoplifter: I stole £30m of goodies in 30-year crime spree

A JAILBIRD who dubbed herself Birmingham’s “most prolific shoplifter” has claimed she stole more than £30 million worth of goods from city stores before turning her life around.

- HARRY LEACH News Reporter

Keeley Knowles estimated she took £3.5 million worth of stock from one store in Selly Oak alone over a 31-month period.

The former shoplifter would target high-end retailers, stealing designer clothes and handbags, to fund her heroin habit that began in her early teens and had spiralled out of control.

Now in her 40s, Keeley was offending for nearly 30 years before she decided to pack it in after multiple stints behind bars.

Police previously said she was planning on enrolling on an Open University programme and had applied for a probation peer mentor course.

Speaking to YouTuber ‘Birmz is Grime’ recently about her criminal past, Keeley said Loss Prevention Magazine had estimated her total thefts at £30 million - but that she believed the true figure to be much higher.