Prolific car thief who led police on wild chases finally captured after being exposed by his McDonald's order

Scottish Sun

11-07-2025

Roberts drove down a dual carriageway in the wrong direction, exceeded 100mph and nearly smashed into an HGV
HAPPY WHEELS Prolific car thief who led police on wild chases finally captured after being exposed by his McDonald's order
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A PROLIFIC car thief who led police on wild chases was finally snared after being exposed by his McDonald's order.
Callum Roberts nicked two cars within two weeks of each other from locations across Shrewsbury in February this year.
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The car thief felt a little peckish after stealing a BMW
Credit: Google
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Callum Roberts' need for McDonald's ultimately led to his downfall
Credit: West Mercia Police
But in a bizarre twist, the 20-year-old's love for fast-food eventually led to his arrest.
He snatched the first vehicle, a silver BMW, from a car park on February 15 at around 10pm.
When the stolen car flagged up on police systems later that evening, West Mercia officers followed.
Roberts led the force on a high speed chase as he barreled through 30mph zones at 60mph.
He narrowly avoided smashing into another vehicle before evading the force.
The BMW was subsequently found abandoned in a remote area.
But, Roberts must have felt a little peckish after stealing the car, as officers found a McDonald's bag left behind.
It contained a receipt showing he'd been to the branch in Meole Brace, shortly after committing his crime.
CCTV footage from the restaurant revealed Roberts as the driver.
Just two weeks later, the keys to a Citroen C3 were taken from a Shrewsbury property in Brougham Square.
And, the next night Roberts came back for the car itself.
Three days later, officers spotted the vehicle, and engaged in another pursuit when Roberts failed to stop.
On this occasion, the thief travelled at around 60mph in a 20mph zone, before recklessly driving down the A5 in the wrong direction.
Here, Roberts started speeding in excess of 100mph, and nearly crashed into a HGV.
The yob eventually stopped in a layby and tried to flee on foot, but officers quickly detained him.
Perhaps it was the second McDonald's that slowed him down, as investigations uncovered Roberts had scoffed a meal from the chain yet again.
This time, he had used bank cards found within the Citroen.
Roberts pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, aggravated vehicle taking, fraud by false representation and two counts of driving while disqualified in May 2025 at Shrewsbury Crown Court.
A judge today sentenced the defendant to three years in jail.
He will also be subject to a four-year and two-month driving ban when he is released.
Detective Constable Tom Clough, said: 'I hope yesterday's sentence serves as a warning that we will work tirelessly to ensure those who cause distress to the public by taking what does not belong to them, as well as putting lives at risk by their actions, are put before the courts.
'Not only was he driving stolen vehicles, Roberts was aware that he was driving whilst disqualified and his willingness to engage in such risk taking to evade capture on two separate occasions is something that caused officers great concern.
'This was a team effort and if it wasn't for the commitment of my team as well as our roads policing officers, we couldn't have achieved such a good result in such a short space of time.
'I am pleased with the sentence at court, which I hope gives the victims some sort of closure, as well as time for Roberts to reflect on how dangerous his actions were, which could have had tragic consequences given the lack of care for the safety of others and himself.'