Bakery bandit who ‘stole half of cake maker’s stock from her honesty box stall’ fails to appear in court

By JOSHUA HAINING, NEWS REPORTER

Published: | Updated:

The bakery bandit who is accused of stealing half a cake maker’s stock from her honesty box stall without paying a penny failed to appear in court after he was summoned for theft.

Blake Young from Sprignall, Peterborough, reportedly emptied out 25 baked goods worth £80 from the Treat Street Bake Shed in Spalding, Lincolnshire, on May 9. 

He was due to appear in Boston Magistrate’s Court on June 22 but he did not show up.

Prosecutor, Lottie Tyler, said the reason Young did not appear in person was because ‘he didn’t have the funds to get to court’. 

Arrangements were made for the alleged bakery bandit to attend via video link instead, and although he awaited his trial in a call for most of the day, Young did not join when his case was finally ready at 4.45pm.

The hearing was then adjourned until July 20 and a warrant for his arrest will be issued if he fails to attend.

Young was summoned after a hidden camera inside the honesty box shed captured him taking a variety of baked goods without paying.

He is accused of beginning the treat theft by opening the shed door with his red t-shirt covering his chin in an apparent attempt to hide his identity.

A pony-tailed bakery bandit failed to appear in court this week after he was summoned for theft

Blake Young, 18, is accused of stealing baked goods from an honesty box in Spalding, Lincolnshire, on May 9

The bakery bandit’s case was adjourned on June 22 until next month in Boston Magistrate’s Court

Young then seemingly slowly filled a plastic carrier bag with a variety of goodies while licking his lips and even tried to open the cash box inside the stall before calmly walking away.

After seeing the pony-tailed thief taking her homemade cakes from just outside her front door, treat shed owner, Sabina Seidel, assumed that he was just another supportive customer.

The 39-year-old went outside and thanked the man, thinking he paid by cash, to which he replied ‘you’re welcome’ as he left.

But as she turned to take stock inside the cake shed, the penny dropped and Sabina realised she was the victim of the bakery bandit.

‘I’d assumed he paid by cash and I checked the cash box and he hadn’t put money in there’, she previously told the Mail.

Sabina started the cake shed in March as a way of bringing her dream of owning a bakery to life despite other life commitments.

She bakes an assortment of home-made treats and fills the shed next to her front door, relying on the honesty of customers to pay by cash or online.

After her customers caught wind caught wind of the theft, the rest of her stock quickly sold out and one customer even offered her money which she politely declined.

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Owner, Sabina Seidel, 39, initially thought the man was a supportive customer but the footage showed the moment she realised she had half her stock stolen

After the theft, the community came out in support of her business with the rest of her goods selling out on the same day

At the time of the break-in she said: ‘People have been so supportive, there are repeat customers and customers that come at the same time every single week.

‘Somebody came yesterday after they heard what happened to put money towards what happened but I didn’t take it.’

Despite the fact the man is said to have stolen half of her stock, Sabina said her only response was to bake even more than before.

She spent the remainder of her evening baking and re-stocked the shed the following morning.

The Treat Street Bake Shed uses an honesty system with a QR code for card payments and a cash box or money. It is open Monday to Friday.

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