Man jailed for stealing face masks from London’s King’s College Hospital
A man has been jailed for three months after he was caught stealing face masks from a hospital in south London.
Lerun Hussain, 34, was sentenced to 12 weeks at Croydon Magistrates’ Court today following the incident at King’s College Hospital.
Police were called to the hospital in Denmark Hill at around 11.20am on Sunday after Hussain was detained by security staff for stealing three masks.
He was charged with theft and also detained for being in breach of a court order.
Hussein, from Clapham, pleaded guilty to theft and was sentenced day to three months’ imprisonment.
The theft comes amid concerns that hospital staff are suffering from a shortage of personal protection equipment needed during the coronavirus crisis.
NHS staff and care workers have reportedly been forced to buy their own masks or craft makeshift masks out of other material as a result of the shortage.
A string of companies have offered up their resources to manufacture more medical equipment as health services around the world struggle to keep up with demand.
Apple has so far sourced 20m face masks for health workers and has also begun production of face shields.