Northampton hospital thief was stealing PPE BEFORE the pandemic... but put prices up when Covid-19 panic hit

A cleaner stole PPE from Northampton General Hospital and sold it on eBay for up to 10 times their value during the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Karolina Zarina, of Queen's Park, claims she was already stealing and flogging supplies from work before crisis hit - but this did not stop her from upping the prices on her eBay during the panic in March 2020.

It included selling one litre bottles of hand sanitizer worth £4.98 to the NHS for £45. She also moved 99 packs of hospital grade wipes for as much as £22.50 a pack.

At her sentencing at Northampton Crown Court today (February 16), the judge heard how the 48-year-old made as much as £5,900 through her online shop through the theft.

Prosecutor Lucia Harrington told the judge: "Her shop saw a surge in price that was far beyond the retail price.

"And the timing of the price increases indicates that Zarina was reacting to the increasing price of PPE created by the pandemic."

Zarina, who worked as a cleaner for over a year at Northampton General Hospital, reportedly began stealing PPE and selling it online to cover debts in December 2019.

However, when the Covid-19 outbreak hit in early 2020, the price of protective and sanitizing gear shot up - and so did her profits.

A one-litre bottle of hand sanitizer costs £4.98 to the NHS.

But over the course of two weeks in March, the price of Zarina's stolen bottles rose from £15.99, then £20.99, then £35, then £45.

She was caught in April 2020 after the hospital found the eBay page and conducted an audit over missing stock.

When officers arrived at her house, they found stocks of hand gel, disinfectant wipes and masks. Some of the equipment could be used back on the wards.

Zarina admitted everything when interviewed by police and said she began in December to pay for debts. The court heard she was "horrified" at how far it had gone.

In sentencing, Recorder Patrick Upward said: "If I thought for one minute that you had seized the opportunity of the current pandemic to make money I would sentence you to a term of immediate imprisonment.

"But I accept that you took the opportunity to steal before the threat of the pandemic was apparent to anyone.

"Although, it has to be said, that once the value of those items increased you took advantage of it."

The 48-year-old was handed a three month prison sentence suspended for 12 months.