Hardly the Ambassador’s Reception! Thief who swiped £145 of 1990s favourites Ferrero Rochers is greeted by police after returning the scene of the crime
- Cory Thomson, 21, stole £145 worth of Ferrero Rocher chocolates on October 16
- He managed to flee from Wilkos in Newcastle without being caught but returned
- Thomson was immediately recognised and the police were called, a court heard
- Thomson was fined £166 and ordered to pay £72 compensation and £85 costs
A thief who stole £145 worth of Ferrero Rocher chocolates was caught by police after returning to the scene of the crime.
Cory Thomson, 21, of Byker, Newcastle, made-off with the haul of the gold-wrapped chocolates from hardware store Wilkos in Newcastle City Centre on October 16.
He managed to flee the store without being detained but after returning to the shop later, he was immediately recognised and the police were called, a court heard.
The hazelnut, wafer, and milk chocolate treats became a household name in 1993 after the kitsch advert featuring the ‘ambassador’s party’.
But it is unlikely this sweet-toothed thief would be welcome at the Ambassador’s Reception.
Cory Thomson (pictured), 21, of Byker, Newcastle, made-off with the haul of the gold-wrapped chocolates from hardware store Wilkos in Newcastle City Centre on October 16
He managed to flee Wilkos (pictured) without being detained but after returning to the shop later, he was immediately recognised and the police were called, a court heard
Thomson was due before magistrates in Newcastle on Wednesday but failed to show as he was at work in his new job with Gateshead Council.
Instead, Thomson got his solicitor to enter a guilty plea to shop theft on his behalf, the court heard.
Prosecutor, James Long, said: ‘The defendant has been in and stolen the goods, the Ferrero Rocher, and left then come back again.
‘It’s when he comes back that he is recognised and detained.
‘The goods were not recovered, so there would be a claim for £145 compensation.
‘There was another person involved but that other person has never been detected.’
Paul Kennedy, defending, said Thomson had made significant improvements in his life and was already subject to a community order.
‘He now has a job working for Gateshead Council,’ Mr Kennedy continued. ‘He’s doing well on his community order.’
The hazelnut, wafer, and milk chocolate treats (pictured) became a household name in 1993 after the kitsch advert featuring the ‘ambassador’s party’
The iconic advert saw an ambassador with ‘exquisite taste’ summon a footman to serve a pyramid of gold-wrapped chocolates to adoring guests
Thomson was fined £166 and ordered to pay £72 compensation and £85 costs.
In 1982, the gleaming beauty of a pyramid of Rochers, meaning ‘nuggets’ in French, was unveiled.
And Ferrero Rocher chocolates became popular in the UK during the 1990s thanks to a series of TV adverts set at a party in a European ambassador’s official residence.
The kitsch ‘Ambassador’s Party’ advert first appeared on television screens in 1993.
The iconic advert saw an ambassador with ‘exquisite taste’ summon a footman to serve a pyramid of gold-wrapped chocolates to adoring guests.
A beautiful woman then declares in a foreign accent: ‘Monsieur, with these Rocher you’re really spoiling us.’
The woman’s famous line and the phrase ‘Eccellente’ quickly passed into popular culture following the release of the advert.