Cheyenne Davidson spent 12 days in jail for stealing about $2,000 worth of unreturned retail items, while several other theft charges were stayed. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Ian Holmes

retail thefts

Repeat Nanaimo liquor store thief released following brief jail tenure

Jul 3, 2025 | 3:33 PM

NANAIMO — Three weeks removed from her latest liquor store theft, a Nanaimo woman is getting an opportunity to redeem herself.

Cheyenne Patricia Davidson, 32, received a time-served jail sentence this week of 19 days behind bars for stealing nearly $1,000 worth of alcohol from Nanaimo liquor stores, and over $200 in cosmetics from a local pharmacy.

Best Buy Liquor Store on Jingle Pot Rd. was the hardest hit by Davidson’s spree last summer and over the past several weeks, with 13 bottles of alcohol stolen totalling over $770 worth of losses for the store during six thefts.

Davidson pleaded guilty to seven theft under $5,000 charges and for breaching release conditions for returning to Best Buy Liquor Store.

Cheyenne Patricia Davidson was released following an extended retail crime spree. (Nanaimo RCMP)

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Last October, Davidson, a month away from giving birth to her second child, stole over $200 worth of cosmetics from the Rexall drug store on Bowen Rd.

None of the stolen goods were recovered.

In-store surveillance video was used to link Davidson to the thefts.

During a Wednesday, July 2 sentencing hearing, Crown counsel Leanne Mascolo agreed to a joint submission formed with Davidson’s lawyer for a time-served jail sentence and 18 months’ probation.

“It hopefully keeps the community safe from these constant thefts and provides Ms. Davidson with an opportunity to work with some community programs and get some help that she needs,” Mascolo said.

Davidson, who attended the sentencing hearing while in custody on the Lower Mainland, was credited for 19 days spent behind bars (12 actual days in custody).

She was most recently arrested on June 24 in relation to a June 10 theft from the Best Buy Liquor Store on Jingle Pot Rd.

Telling the court his client worked as a care aid for several years in Nanaimo, defence attorney Robert Fredrickson said Davidson has prior substance abuse issues.

Davidson had two brain tumors removed and to this day suffers from uncontrolled seizures.

Fredrickson said Davidson hopes to regain custody of her two children.

“Certainly, that is a great reinforcement of her need to deal with her underlying drug problem,” Fredrickson told the hearing.

A pre-sentence report shed light on Davidson’s background and her willingness for rehabilitation.

Judge Tamara Hodge said the report showed Davidson’s health struggles contributed to her offending.

“Losing that employment caused her to be become unhomed, and that sort of is the background to the thieving behaviour that has brought her to court,” judge Hodge said.

The judge stated retail thefts not only impact targeted businesses but also pass increased costs along to consumers.

Davidson apologized for her behaviour and vowed to build on remaining sober since her most recent arrest.

She’s looking forward to getting better and seeing her kids.

“Drugs are the last thing I’ve been thinking about. Maybe I needed this little bit of time to get my head straight and I’ve got it straight now. I have a plan to go out to the community; I have somewhere to stay.”

She’s convinced sobriety will provide what she needs to be a productive member of society.

“…I’m a different person, I can do better, and I’m going to do better.”

Davidson, who’s on disability, said she’s prepared to pay back the stores she stole from.

She was not ordered to make restitution payments.

Her probation conditions include counselling provisions, which could include residential treatment, as well as no-go orders to several mid-Island liquor stores between Cedar and Nanoose Bay.

While she was charged with several other thefts, those charges were dropped in exchange for a plea agreement.

Davidson’s prior criminal record is limited.

She had a pair of thefts under $5,000 for offences in Nanaimo and Ladysmith in 2023, leading to non-custodial sentences.

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