Hungry thief in a double quick raid
AHUNGRY thief burgled two premises in just ten minutes because he couldn’t afford to eat.
William Thornton, of Roe Street, Macclesfield, let himself into the stock room of Bargain Booze in Crewe and helped himself to cigarettes worth £500, a court heard.
Just ten minutes earlier Thornton, 24, had walked into Delvin Dental Practice, also in Crewe, and attempted to steal a laptop and perfume worth a total £404.
Luckily a dental nurse spotted Thornton leaving the premises and managed to get them back after confronting him, a hearing heard.
He admitted two bur- glaries at a hearing at Macclesfield Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday (April 15).
He also admitted possessing cannabis after he was found with £10 worth of the drug by police who arrested him when he failed to turn up to a court hearing.
Debbie Byrne, prosecuting, said: “A shop worker saw Thornton enter the store but never saw him leave. After half an hour she went into the stock room office and saw that cigarettes were missing from the shelves.
“CCTV footage was reviewed which showed Thornton stealing the cigarettes.”
The court heard that just 10 minutes earlier Thornton had attempted to take a laptop from the dental practice.
Debbie added: “A dental practitioner heard someone upstairs. She saw Thornton leaving the premises with the laptop bag and a plastic bag.
“She went out and confronted him and managed to get the items back.
“In police interview he fully admitted the offences, he said he was on medication which affected his appetite, his disability benefit had not been sorted out and he needed to eat.”
Trevor Feeley, defending Thornton, said: “The burglaries happened 10 minutes apart. It was 10 minutes of madness.
“Four days after these offences he was sectioned and diagnosed with schizophrenia and bi-polar.
“Two weeks before these offences he was released after seven months on remand. He did not have a discharge grant and was sleeping rough for some time as well.
“All these things going in his life had a direct impact on his behaviour on this date.”
Thornton was handed a 16 week curfew by magistrates from 7pm to 7am, and told to £350 compensation to Bargain Booze.