18 years for acid attacker who targeted pensioners

A SERIAL burglar who ‘terrorised’ pensioners by spraying them with acid was jailed for 18 years yesterday.

Gerard Whelan, 44, embarked on a horrific ‘campaign of violence’ attacking ten people – including five acid attacks in 24 hours – leaving some victims scarred for life.

A court heard how one of his victims, Darshan Mannan, was left with third-degree burns to a quarter of her body. The 69year-old awoke to find Whelan standing over her after he broke into her home in Ilford, East London on December 13 last year.

Whelan squeezed a bottle of acid at her when she tried to escape, causing her to slip and fall into the pool of corrosive liquid. Judge Joanna Greenberg, at Wood Green Crown Court, said of the attack: ‘Put simply, you have ruined her life.’

Whelan, of Paddington, West London, was arrested on January 23 after his DNA was recovered from a crutch he used to batter another victim. He later admitted 12 offences of including burglary and assault.

He was given an extended sentence, meaning he will have to serve two-thirds before being eligible for release.