Hammersmith 'Porch Pirate' Jailed After Parcel Theft Spree

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Ronald De-St-Aubin already had 41 convictions dating back decades

De-St-Aubin and a still from a Ring camera taken during one of his thefts. Picture: Met Police

November 2, 2026

A prolific thief from Hammersmith who plagued the Parsons Green area stealing parcels from residents’ doorsteps has been jailed for 22 months after a three-month crime spree.

Ronald De-St-Aubin, 61, targeted homes between July and September this year, helping himself to packages containing a range of goods including designer clothing and champagne.

The ‘porch pirate’, was eventually caught after frustrated residents turned detective, compiling a dossier of doorbell camera footage showing him stealing parcels and handing the evidence to police.

De-St-Aubin was sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court by Judge Martin Edmunds KC, who criticised his indifference to the impact of his offending on victims and businesses.

Passing sentence, the judge pointed out that the thefts showed no regard for the consequences for those, who might not have been covered by insurance, or for small vendors who could potentially have been driven out of business.

Police subsequently raided De-St-Aubin’s home in Hammersmith, where they found empty packages stolen from residents’ porches, as well as clothing matching that worn by the thief in CCTV footage.

An ankle tag he was wearing as part of an earlier community order showed that he had been in the relevant areas when the thefts were committed.

Initially denying the charges, De-St-Aubin changed his plea to guilty on six counts of theft by finding as the judge began reviewing the extensive CCTV footage in court.

The father of two has a lengthy criminal history, with 41 previous convictions. Just four weeks before the latest parcel theft spree, he had been convicted of breaking into a skateboard shop, an offence for which he received the community order.

His defence barrister, told the court that De-St-Aubin had first started stealing when he was 13, in 1978, taking other people's belongings to fund his drug use.

Detective Sergeant Andy Swindells, of the Metropolitan Police, said, “Ronald De-St-Aubin is a career criminal whose offending had a significant impact on his victims.

“He was identified from CCTV and we arrested him as he left his flat. A GPS tag that he was wearing around his ankle as part of a previous community order showed he'd been in the relevant areas when the thefts were committed.

“We know that parcel theft causes real concerns in our communities - and I hope this case demonstrates that brazen criminality of the kind De-St-Aubin committed will not be tolerated.”

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