A THIEF with expensive taste who stole clothes worth hundreds of pounds from the designer outlet must carry out 150 hours of unpaid work over the next year as punishment.

Dragos Patrunjel, 23, of William Street in Swindon, pleaded guilty to seven theft charges at Swindon Magistrates Court on Wednesday.

Patrunjel had been apprehended in the Tesco on Ocotal Way on January 10 for stealing £260 of sunglasses and electrical items.

When security staff discovered that he had a device which can remove the security tags from clothes, police searched his home and discovered a stylish stash of stolen swag.

Pauline Lambert, prosecuting, said: “Police were called to Tesco because security had detained a shoplifter.

“They found that he had a de-tagging device on him and when they went to his home address to search the property, they found a large amount of clothing tags.

“In interview, he said he bought the device off ebay after watching a video online.

“He admitted to further thefts and all the stolen items were gathered together and recovered.”

The clothes had been stolen from the outlet a week earlier, on January 3.

Patrunjel’s shopping list included clothes worth £1,100 from Hugo Boss, £300 from Tommy Hilfiger, £160 from Calvin Klein, £120 from H&M, £100 from Gant, and £60 from Armani.

Ben Worthington, defending, explained that poor self-control and an overwhelming love of fashion lead to the Romanian’s stealing spree.

Mr Worthington said: “He saw a video on YouTube showing how items could be de-tagged and greed got the best of him.

“He tried to get himself some nice clothes but didn’t have the money to afford them.

“He grew up in Italy and I daresay that’s rubbed off on him a bit – as you can see today, he’s quite well-dressed.

“He regrets what happened and wants to put the situation behind him.”

A representative from probation services said: “It was difficult for him to see that there is a victim in this.

“I had to explain to him that the shops lose money and the general public end up paying more to make up for the stolen clothes, so there is always a victim in these cases.

“He said he’s incredibly ashamed, he doesn’t know what he was thinking, it was a stupid, ridiculous mistake, and it wasn’t worth it.

“He considers himself a good person and he said he likes to dress nicely.

“I can’t see him committing another offence like this again, he’s learned his lesson.”

Patrunjel must also pay £85 in costs and £85 to victim services.