Addicts stole holy texts then threw them away

TWO drug addicts who ‘desecrated’ a synagogue by burgling it and stealing holy documents before dumping them, have avoided jail.

Wayne Beddow, 47, and Tracy Kelly, 46, are both ‘desperate’ addicts with long records of stealing to feed their habits, a court was told.

And a judge decided to try and tackle their long standing problems rather than sending them to prison, despite acknowledging the impact the shocking crime had on the victim.

The man, a member of the congregation at the Viznitz Orthodox synagogue on Leicester Road in Salford, had stored his Phylacteries – small leather cube boxes containing Torah texts written on parchment – after using them during worship, Manchester’s Minshull Street Crown Court was told.

Judge Lawton said he accepted the pair didn’t know what they had taken and quickly discarded them once they realised they wouldn’t be able to sell them for drugs. The items, worth around £800 but of huge ‘sacred’ value, were eventually recovered and handed back to their owner without damage.

Hunter Gray, defending Beddow, said he had been making very good progress on a previous probation service programme and described the incident as a ‘lapse.’

Beddow and Kelly, both of Moston Street, Higher Broughton, pleaded guilty to burglary at an earlier hearing at the magistrates court.

On Wednesday, Beddow was sentenced to a 12 month community order. He must also undergo a drug rehabilitation programme, which will be monitored monthly by the judge. He will also be subject to a curfew between the hours of 8pm and 6am for six months.

Kelly was also given a 12 month community order with a nine month drug rehabilitation programme.