Iulian Vladu and Florin Moga travelled to Warrington town centre before executing the distraction theft
Florin Moga (left) and Iulian Vladu both appeared at Warrington Magistrates’ Court on Friday 27 December where they were sentenced for their roles in relation to two distraction thefts(Image: Cheshire Police)
Two men who withdrew £1,000 after pinching a man’s wallet were stopped by police officers trying to flee to Ireland by ferry. Iulian Vladu and Florin Moga travelled to Warrington town centre on September 25 this year where the pair worked together to distract a man to steal his wallet.
The wallet contained £400 in cash as well as a number of bank cards, which the offenders used to withdraw £1,000 from the man’s account. The pair were tracked using CCTV and their vehicle was identified and marked by investigating officers. They were later arrested on October 3 after the vehicle was stopped in Oxford by officers from a different force.
The pair were both transported back to Warrington where they were charged in relation to the offences. Vladu and Moga appeared at court on October 5 where they were released on conditional bail by the court. Following their release they drove to Holyhead where they attempted to flee the country by catching a ferry to Ireland.
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The pair were stopped by officers and later charged with being likely to breach police bail. Both men were subsequently remanded in custody. Both men pleaded guilty to theft, fraud by false representation and being likely to breach police bail. Vladu also pleaded guilty to a second count of theft in relation to an earlier incident.
That incident saw Vladu again travel to Warrington, this time in October 16 2023 with a separate accomplice – 20-year-old Geta Marin, from Scunthorpe, and stole a wallet from a man shopping in the town. The matter was reported to police who recovered CCTV footage of the pair and the vehicle that they were travelling in.
Vladu and Marin were charged in relation to that theft and were released on bail. Both later failed to attend court and warrants were issued for their arrests. The warrant for Marin remains active and anyone who has information in relation to her whereabouts is asked to call Cheshire Police.
Cheshire Police are appealing for help finding Geta Marin, 20 and from Scunthorpe(Image: Cheshire Police)
Vladu, 48, of Gladstone Road, Northampton, and Moga, 33, of Fowleshill Road, Coventry, were both sentenced to 16 weeks in prison after they appeared at Warrington Magistrates’ Court on December 27.
Following their sentencing Police Constable Graham Davies, of Cheshire Police’s Warrington town centre beat team, said: “Vladu and Moga purposefully travelled to Warrington in order to commit crime. They thought that by travelling from outside the area they’d be able to get an easy ride and that police wouldn’t be able to track them down.
“However, as this result demonstrates, the pair seriously underestimated the tenacity and dedication of the team here at Warrington to ensure those who commit crime in our town are brought to justice…The message is clear – you will be caught, and you will be held accountable.”