Man Who Stole $48,000 Worth Of Harry Potter Merch is Going To Jail

A UK man is going to jail for stealing £36,935 ($48,000 USD) worth of Harry Potter merchandise and selling it on the popular auction site eBay. 35-year-old Adam Hill, who is a former Warner Bros. Studios employee, was charged with stealing all manner of items from the film company's stock room, including wands, badges, and key rings. The thefts took place between December 2017 and March 2018, according to a news release from local authorities.

Hill is said to have sold the items through his personal eBay account, and on occasion he used the Warner Bros. franking machine to send the items from within the Warner Bros. mail room.

The report goes on to highlight how brazen Hill was in his thefts. The release says Hill got caught when his colleagues took notice of Harry Potter merch appearing and then vanishing from under Hill's desk.

In total, Hill is said to have sold 1,040 Harry potter items on eBay. Authorities searched his car and found 12 further items that Hill reportedly planned to sell. A search of Hill's home in St Neots led to the discovery of even more items that Hill reportedly planned to unload.

"In a significant breach of trust, Adam Hill had the audacity to steal thousands of pounds of merchandise from Warner Bros in plain sight of his work colleagues; but they reported him after growing suspicious of the items constantly piling up under his desk," Crown Prosecution Service's Jan Muller said in a statement.

Hill was sentenced to 14 months in prison suspended for 18 months and 250 hours unpaid work.