A THIEF who stole a collection tin containing £300 for Oscar Saxelby-Lee has been jailed for 18 weeks.

Lewis Ilsley, 41, was sentenced at Kidderminster Magistrates Court after admitting stealing the donations tin from Sophie’s Grill in Lowesmoor, Worcester.

Ilsley, of Old Orchard, Upton-upon-Severn was also ordered to pay back the £300 as compensation.

He was caught on CCTV as he stole the money from Sophie’s while staff were away from the till, at around 10.20pm on September 22.

Five-year-old Oscar, from St John’s in Worcester, has been bravely battling T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia since Christmas and his family are in a race against time to raise £500,000 for lifesaving treatment.

Sophie Wall, who owns the grill bar, said she had initially displayed the donations tin to collect money for dying mum Michelle Ives, who wants to make the most of the time she has left with her children.

Friend Gaynor Cook placed 10 tins around the city, including in Sophie’s, but after seeing Oscar’s appeal, Mrs Ives selflessly decided to give any money collected to him instead.

The mum-of-four, 45, from Littleworth, was diagnosed with melanoma 10 years ago and was in remission for five years but was told that the cancer had returned and was at an advanced stage nearly three years ago.

Although she has had more 50 tumours in her brain treated with radiation therapy, she has rejected further radiation because it poses massive risks.

“We were still open,” Sophie said, referring to the night of the theft. “There were two members of staff, they were in the back washing up.

“Our front door is right by the till – he could just reach in and didn’t even need to close the door first.”

She said she came into work the following day, a Monday, and noticed the tin was missing and initially called the cleaner to see if she’d moved it, before studying the CCTV from 9pm.

“The tin had a picture of Michelle and her family – so he knew it was for charity,” she added.

Oscar, of Pitmaston Primary School, was briefly cancer free following a transplant in the summer before it returned.

His parents Olivia Saxelby and Jamie Lee are raising funds to take him to Singapore for CAR-T trial treatment.

Ilsley was sentenced for the theft on September 25.

The Worcester News was initially told by the police and CPS, on Friday, that Ilsley was yet to appear in court or enter a plea for this theft, but had been sentenced for a number of other offences. However, it has now emerged that this was not case.