Caerphilly couple sentenced after spate of “dine and dashes” from Beefeater restaurants

A husband and wife from Caerphilly who “dined and dashed” at a number of restaurants across South Wales have been sentenced to 80 hours of community service.

Paul Brown, 50, and Rhiannon Brown, 46, were each charged with four counts of making off without payment after sneaking out of three Beefeater restaurants in four weeks.

Cardiff Magistrates’ Court heard how the pair, of St Fagans Street in Caerphilly, “got their kicks” by leaving without paying for their meals and drinks.

Their first dine and dash took place at the Longbow Beefeater in Llantrisant in February, before moving on to the chain’s Walston Castle restaurant in Cardiff two weeks later and then the Bagle Brook restaurant in Port Talbot just over a week later.

They were recognised by staff when they returned to the Walston Castle restaurant three months later and again left without paying.

The couple – who have three children – were identified and arrested by police.

They both pleaded guilty to the charges at Cardiff Magistrates’ Court, and were sentenced to 80 hours of unpaid work.

They were also ordered to repay the chain £181.65 each and pay costs of £50 and a victim surcharge of £85 each.

A spokesperson for Beefeater said: “We would like to take this opportunity to praise our quick-witted team whose actions helped identify the individuals involved and helped bring them to justice.”