Portland serial shoplifter admits to more than 1,000 heists, gets less than 2 years

PORTLAND — A prolific Portland shoplifter whose taste for stolen shrimp and televisions helped lead to his most recent arrests was sentenced Wednesday to less than two years in prison.

Barry Trennel Sanders, 58, pleaded guilty to multiple counts of theft stemming from a rash of retail heists in 2019, according to the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office.

As part of an agreement reached with prosecutors, he admitted to stealing merchandise from Portland stores more than 1,000 times during his storied criminal career, court records show.

Portland detectives nicknamed him the “Hamburglar” in 2014 after he stole $2,690 worth of meat from Safeway grocery stores.

Court records show the serial shoplifter’s rap sheet dates back to at least 1985.

“I know the law. I know the rules. I know what I can and can’t do,” Sanders told police during a videotaped interview in 2016. “Every time I get out of prison, I steal.”

Prosecutors said Sanders last year stole $600 worth of shrimp as well as steaks, chicken wings, chicken thighs and Tide Pods during visits to WinCo.

He was also caught loading televisions into shopping carts at Target stores and then casually trying to leave, records show.