Two greedy sisters have been jailed for stealing perfume worth about £80,000 from duty-free shops at Gatwick airport, using their ill-gotten gains to fund cosmetic surgery and a lavish lifestyle.
Georgina Epitropou, 42, and Laura Epitropou, 45, targeted duty-free stores over a 10-month period when they stole perfumes and cosmetics as part of a high-value conspiracy.
They booked internal UK flights so that they could carry out the thefts. But they were caught on CCTV and were stopped by police while boarding a flight from Gatwick to Belfast.
At Brighton Crown Court on Tuesday (24 September), Recorder John Hardy jailed the pair for two and a half years each.
Georgina Epitropou, of Grattons Drive, Crawley, admitted conspiracy to steal between dates in November 2021 and September 2022.
Laura Epitropou, of The Boulevard, Crawley, admitted the same charge and a further charge of acquiring criminal property.
The court was told that, at first, one sister would go to the airport and book an internal flight to gain access to the duty-free shops. But later both sisters became involved.
While one sister would distract a staff member, the other would fill an empty suitcase with stolen goods.
They were arrested and an investigation by Gatwick CID found that they had taken 22 internal flights over 10 months.
PC Michelle Robinson said: “The Epitropou sisters targeted high-value perfumes and cosmetic products for their own financial greed.
“We worked in partnership with our colleagues at the airport to build a strong case against the sisters.
“Business crime and shop thefts have a considerable impact on victims, including shop workers, so we were determined to catch these offenders.
“It demonstrates that we take these reports seriously and will work hard to ensure that offenders are prosecuted.”
Daniel Cummins, from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said: “Despite claiming that they were in debt when they were arrested, it was clear that both sisters were living beyond their means and using these thefts to fund their lavish lifestyles, which included cosmetic surgery.
“They were stealing to order, putting significant planning into these thefts, deciding how many items to take and even lowering that number after Laura was arrested by Police Scotland with stolen goods in her possession.
“The women sold the stolen products at around half the price they retailed for, making thousands in the process through online marketplaces and sales to individuals.”
