‘Wanna buy some knocked off Oil of Olay?’

Two hapless thieves who were caught red-handed trying to sell a haul of Olay cosmetics in a hairdressers moments after stealing them have been jailed.

Jason Lee Lewis, 41, armed himself with a meat cleaver and a crowbar while handling hundreds of pounds worth of anti-aging creams with Peter Ajufo, 38, in east London on 28 January.

The pair were watched by CCTV operators trying to break into security boxes packed with beauty products with a group of other men.

They were followed by police to a hairdressers on Kingsland High Street in Dalston where Lewis was stopped as Ajufo attempted to flog moisturisers to salon staff inside.

Officers uncovered packaged products from his jacket pockets before opening a holdall bag carried by Lewis to find the meat cleaver and crowbar.

Lewis, of no fixed address, claimed the crowbar was only used for fixing cars but pleaded guilty to going equipped for violence, possessing a bladed article and handling stolen goods at the first opportunity.

The judge, Mr Recorder Tom Kark sentenced him to four months imprisonment at the Old Bailey.

Ajufo, also of no fixed address, admitted two counts of handling stolen goods and breaching an anti-social behaviour order and was sentenced to two months behind bars.

The pair appeared via video-link from HMP Wandsworth and laughed as the court heard how an officer had noticed him ‘bending down’ and retrieving a crack pipe while he was being driven to Islington Police Station.

Prosecutor Luke Bowyer said: ‘The [cosmetics] were contained and found by the police inside several security boxes, so it would appear they had been stolen.

‘On 28 January at about 8.30pm CCTV operators noticed several males attempting to break open security boxes and police followed them.

‘Two officers caught up with them outside a hairdressers on Kingsland Road and began to search them for stolen goods. Lewis was carrying a holdall.

‘At the time Mr Ajufo was inside the shop trying to find out how much they would buy the beauty products for.

‘Lewis was searched and police found Olay skin cosmetics on his person. Inside the holdall was the crowbar and meat cleaver.

‘In interview Mr Lewis said he had been given the products by someone to sell and the crowbar was for work purposes fixing cars.

‘Ajufo had two of the cosmetics and moisturisers in his jacket pocket. Both were detained in a police van. They were taken to Islington custody.

‘A policeman observed in the car Ajufo bending down before he got up. He observed there was a crack pipe on the car seat behind him which hadn’t been there before.

‘Ajufo accepted possession of the items but stated he found them. He gave a mixed interview. They both entered guilty pleas at the first opportunity.’