A British cruiser has been arrested after packing nearly £15,000 worth of stolen jewellery for her getaway – and then sending her work colleagues selfies while wearing it.
Lucy Roberts, a 39-year-old from Swanland in Yorkshire, was arrested at Heathrow Airport following a cruise holiday after police discovered she had smuggled stolen merchandise from the high-end jeweller Daniella Draper Beverly, where she had been the store manager.
During her employment, Roberts frequently took jewellery home, allegedly to sort stock – a practice her colleagues found suspicious.
She resigned from the company in early 2025 and set off on a cruise.
But the timing wasn’t the only red flag. Roberts sent holiday photos to former colleagues showing herself decked out in luxury items they recognised – not as her own purchases, but as missing stock from the store.
Police were contacted, and a warrant was swiftly issued. Upon her return flight, Roberts was arrested at Heathrow, where she was still wearing £1,015 worth of stolen jewellery, and was carrying £13,880 worth more in her suitcase.
The police even confirmed that body camera footage of the arrest showed Roberts trying to remove and dispose of more jewellery as she was escorted from the airport.
What Police Found
A search of Roberts’ home found a substantial stash of 269 stolen items, with an estimated value of around £108,000 ($148,000).
Including the jewellery she had taken onto the cruise, the total theft value was around £125,000 ($171,000).
She was charged with theft, with further evidence showing she had conducted fraudulent returns and falsified stock counts to cover her tracks.
Roberts pleaded guilty at Grimsby Crown Court and was sentenced to 28 months in prison. Detective Sgt. Krista Wilkinson of Humberside Police condemned her actions:
“She betrayed the trust of her employer and her colleagues, who considered her a friend.”
Wilkinson added that she hopes Roberts will reflect on the impact of her actions, not only on the company but on the people she worked with daily.
This isn’t the first jewellery-related crime involving cruise guests in 2025.
In May, an elderly couple on Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Constellation was accused of walking out of a Messina, Sicily jewellery store with a $1,100 ring they’d asked to try on.
When the theft was discovered, the ship had already departed, but the couple was intercepted and searched by police in Naples, where the ring was recovered.
Their case is still pending, and they remain presumed innocent until proven otherwise.
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Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.
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