London Serial shoplifter who stole £3k in toys, books from Waterstones jailed

A brazen thief who looted more than £3,000 worth of board games, books, and toys in a months-long stealing spree has finally been brought to justice after a targeted Met Police crackdown in north London.

Paul Mangal, 58, dubbed the “Board Game Bandit” by frustrated shop owners, struck the same Waterstones branch in Crouch End repeatedly—almost daily at times—between April 2023 and February 2025, stashing stolen goods in a suitcase before slipping away.

Appearing at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, Mangal was handed a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for two years.

The court also imposed a dramatic ban: he is barred from entering both Crouch End and Hornsey for the next two years, and forbidden from carrying a suitcase in the area.

The net closed in on Mangal after local officers, concerned by a surge in retail theft, ramped up patrols and forged closer ties with local businesses.

Waterstones staff, tired of being repeatedly hit, worked with the Met to expose Mangal’s pattern of thefts—particularly intense over the Christmas period.

A covert month-long operation in January gathered damning CCTV evidence, and on 23 February, the thief made his final heist—caught red-handed by staff and arrested shortly afterwards near his Hornsey home.

Mangal later pleaded guilty to 23 counts of theft.

“This wasn’t just shoplifting—it was systematic looting,” said Sergeant James Elliott, who led the investigation.

“Our message is clear: we are not letting prolific offenders intimidate or bankrupt our local businesses.”

The crackdown has already paid dividends—retail theft in the area has dropped by 35% since December.

Officers are now planning to deploy Live Facial Recognition (LFR) and bicycle patrols this summer to keep pressure on petty criminals and keep Crouch End’s streets safer.