A Portland man who stole nearly £40,000 worth of perfume has been jailed.

Justin Goulding, 41 of Grove Road, appeared in court earlier this month where he pleaded guilty to burglary, dangerous driving, driving while disqualified, driving without insurance and failing to stop for police.

Police were alerted to an alarm which activated at Boots in London Road, Bognor Regis, around 10pm on Tuesday,September 24.

On arrival, officers discovered forced entry had been gained to the front of the premises and an unknown quantity of toiletries including perfume and aftershave had been stolen.

A white Ford Transit was linked to the scene, and the vehicle was located using automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology on the M27 near Fareham.

Colleagues from Hampshire Police took over the pursuit of the vehicle, which was reported to have been stolen, and it came to a stop in Honeysuckle Road, Southampton.

Goulding fled from the van but he was swiftly detained by officers. A search of the van was conducted and two large bags with nearly £40,000 worth of fragrances discovered.

Goulding appeared at Lewes Crown Court for sentencing on Monday, May 4, following an earlier guilty plea.

He was sentenced to a total of 70 months in prison and disqualified from driving for 46 months.