Actor steals thousands of pounds worth of watches from Gatwick shop

Police say that Romario Lawson had worked at the airside Ernest Jones outlet at the South Terminal in December 2019.

The 33-year-old actor had briefly taken on employment there, but left his role after less than one month.

During this time, staff noticed high-value items including watches, earrings and gold rings had gone missing.

A full stock check revealed more than £48,000 worth of items were missing, and at the end of 2019 the matter was reported to Sussex Police.

Detectives at Gatwick CID launched an investigation, and Lawson was listed as wanted by police.

Despite attempts to locate him for voluntary interview or to arrest him, he remained at large.

But Lawson was located in February this year and arrested on suspicion of theft.

At interview he admitted taking the items, and told officers that he felt ‘disgusted’ with himself for doing so.

He said he had not sold them because of his feelings. He said he had taken the job at Ernest Jones to earn money to pay for his fees at an acting college.

But he realised that he would not be able to balance working in the role with his studies, and then formed the intention to steal the items from the store.

At Lewes Crown Court on May 6, Lawson, from Lambeth, London admitted a charge of theft by an employee.

The court heard how the most expensive items were an Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra Diamond Bracelet Watch worth £9,040 and an Omega Globemaster Aqua Terra Men’s Two Colour Bracelet Watch worth £8,700.

Lawson was sentenced to a 16-month suspended prison sentence, and was told to complete 40 hours of unpaid work and 12 rehabilitation activity requirement sessions.

Speaking after the case, Detective Constable Mark Baker said: “Lawson stole several high-value items including seven watches and items of jewellery.

“He originally told officers from the Metropolitan Police Service that he was given watches on commission for his work.

“Fortunately all items were recovered as part of the investigation, and Lawson was caught.

“The case demonstrates that we take reports of theft at the airport very seriously, and we are pleased that the offender was apprehended and brought to justice.”