SHOPLIFTERS were told to leave Christchurch “immediately” after four bags of stolen items were recovered.

Police said the shopping bags were filled with stolen goods from “various shops” in the town on Monday, May 17.

Officers said the offenders were told to leave the area immediately and will be spoken with at a later date.

Enquiries are now ongoing into where the items were originally from.

A spokesperson for Christchurch Police said: “Today we were called to deal with shop lifters in Christchurch Town Centre, upon arrival we located the two suspects, they had four bags in their possession which were all filled with stolen goods from various shops in the town.

“Enquiries are ongoing to identify where the items were taken from and the suspects will be spoken to at a later date and were told to leave the area immediately.”