Ionut Tudorache ( pictured ) was caught with 22 stolen mobile phones stuffed down his trousers just days after arriving in Britain . A Romanian pickpocket has been jailed after he admitted stealing 22 mobile phones just days after arriving in Britain . Ionut Tudorache , 25 , was part of an organised gang that targeted music fans at a Kasabian gig , stealing their phones while they were dancing . He wore a pair of tights hidden under his jeans which acted as a net to hold the devices , but claimed he did n't realise what was happening until two Romanians he had befriended starting stuffing the phones down his tights . Immigrant Tudorache had only been in the UK a few days when he committed the crime at the concert at Bournemouth International Centre in Dorset . He was caught when he aroused the suspicions of the BIC 's security team , who stopped and searched him then found the phones down the pair of tights . Staff at the venue had been on red alert following similar incidents at the band 's previous gigs there , Bournemouth Crown Court heard . Stuart Ellacott , prosecuting , said : 'The defendant drew the attention of the security guards by not making eye contact . 'He was stopped and searched , and the mobile phones were found in a pair of tights he was wearing underneath his trousers . ' Despite the fact he committed the crime just days after arriving in Britain , he is unlikely to be deported due to strict laws on removing EU citizens . Without a court recommendation or tougher prison sentence , he can now only be removed at the behest of the Home Secretary . Nicholas Robinson , defending , told the court that Tudorache had not physically taken the phones from their owners at the concert . He claimed Tudorache had been recruited by two Romanians when he had arrived in London and travelled with them to Bournemouth . Mr Robinson said Tudorache , a qualified electromechanical engineer , had not known what he was getting involved until the men he was with started putting the phones down his tights at the gig on November 25 last year . He said : 'My client was not the pickpocket who actually stole the phones . 'He came here hoping for a better life . He had been in London for three or four days and he did n't know anyone . 'He met two Romanian gentlemen and he came down to Bournemouth with them . 'He was told to wear the tights because it would be cold on the south coast . ' Tudorache , of no fixed abode , admitted 22 counts of theft of a mobile phone . In jailing him for nine months , Judge John Harrow said : 'You had been in this country a matter of days before you broke the law . You must have known that you were being dishonest . ' Tudorache operated as part of a criminal gang targeting concert-goers at the Bournemouth International Centre ( pictured ) The incident is the latest in a spate of attacks on concert-goers by criminal gangs . Thieves have previously targeted fans at concerts by bands such as Oasis , Kings of Leon , Stereophonics and Sugababes at the BIC . Steve Turner , general manager at Bournemouth International Centre , said : 'This prosecution sends out a clear message that we do not tolerate theft . 'This particular type of crime affects venues across the UK and our team and security services are working closely with the police to crack down on perpetrators . 'We also encourage our visitors to keep an eye on their belongings at all times . '
A Romanians thief was jailed for nine months for pickpocketing at a concert . Ionut Tudorache was caught with 22 stolen mobile phones in his trousers . He claimed two men he befriended told him to wear tights to stay warm . They then began stuffing phones down his pants , he claimed . Judge John Harrow said : 'You must have known you were being dishonest ' He moved to Britain just days prior to the incident at the Bournemouth gig . However , strict deportation rules mean he is unlikely to be sent home .