by Paul Hooper

A delivery driver who stole hundreds of mobile phones from a top High Street retailer has been sent to prison.

Steve Hunt, 29, worked for DHL taking the phones from Carphone Warehouse for repair and reconditioning.

Canterbury Crown Court heard how 21 boxes – with a retail value of £76,000 – went missing in transit.

Hunt recruited commodities broker John Roberts, 34, from New Ash Green and security officer Katie Brooke, 34, from Tourmaline Drive, Sittingbourne, to sell some of the phones on eBay.

Hunt, of Gibson Street, Sittingbourne, admitted theft and was jailed for 14 months.

Roberts and Brooke, who both admitted handling stolen goods, have been ordered to do 200 hours of unpaid work.

Judge Simon James told them they had all tried to minimise their involvement in the scam but told them they had all been motivated by greed.

Prosecutor John Keele said the exact number of phones stolen between June and September 2010 was not known, but each box contained up to 25 phones, including Blackberries.

He said: “More than 100 phones were found at Brooke’s home and Roberts admitted receiving 20 phones.

“He said that he had made £300 profit from selling five of them. But there were a considerable number of phones taken.

“Hunt admitted taking 14 boxes but the company believe 21 were actually stolen.

“The company realised that phones had started to go missing and through its systems and by CCTV it was clear that Hunt was at the very centre of it.”

Mr Keele said that Hunt “signed off” the deliveries but then stole the boxes which were then passed on to Brooke and Roberts.

The prosecutor added: “Brooke and Roberts were in a relationship at the time and they took possession of some of the phones and a large number were stored at Brooke’s garage.”

Some of them were then sold on eBay.

Brooke told police that Hunt was staying with her in 2009 and asked to store items in her garage. He then gave her a phone.

Hunt then gave phones to her friends and family – but Brooke claimed she did not know at that stage they had been stolen.

Later she paid £50 for the phones and sold them for between £75 to £150, he said.

Hunt, who resigned from DHL as the net closed in on him, claimed he turned to stealing after the breakdown of his marriage.

Defence barrister Simon Taylor said Brooke had been working in the security industry but lost her licence after her arrest.

He added: “Mr Roberts is a very hard working man, working in the financial services industry, but admits he made a very selfish mistake.”

Judge James told Brooke and Roberts: “You were drawn into crime, motivated by your own greed because of a chance to make easy money.”

He said Hunt’s theft had been a breach of trust as DHL’s business depended on its reputation of delivering items safely.