Jailed, thief who tried to beat the cistern...
BURGLAR TOOK PLUMBING EQUIPMENT WORTH MORE THAN £34K
A SALFORD man who stole boilers and toilet cisterns in a burglary rampage in Cheshire has been jailed.
Wayne Atack, from Swinton, stole items worth a total of more than £34,000 over nine months.
The 37-year-old was sentenced to three years in prison at Chester Crown Court.
The court heard how he broke into 28 new-build homes in Cheshire between Wednesday, February 26 and Thursday, November 26.
Most of the break-ins were overnight at building sites in Northwich and Warrington. A building site in Sandbach was also targeted. On some nights Atack broke into as many as seven buildings.
He also caused thousands of pounds worth of damage to the properties.
Atack was caught after NorthwichBeat Team launched an investigation and recovered ANPR data which placed his Skoda Octavia in the area of the incidents.
Mobile phone cell site data also placed him at the scenes.
CSI officers also found matching footprints at five of the eight locations.
He was arrested after a raid at his home on Monday, November 30. During a search, officers seized a pair of Nike trainers, which were an exact match for the footprints found at the scenes.
Atack, of of Milner Road, pleaded guilty to eight counts of burglary and theft.
Following his sentencing, Det Con Paul Matchett, who led the investigation, said: “I welcome the sentence handed to Atack and I hope that it acts as a deterrent to other people who are thinking of coming to Cheshire to commit crime. It is clear that Atack is a prolific offender who shows no regard for any of his victims.
“While all of the homes were empty at the time of the burglaries, many of them had been sold or reserved and were awaiting their new owners.
“Atack’s actions delayed many of these sales and resulted in the loss of more than £34,000 worth of equipment.
“He also caused thousands of pounds worth of damage to the properties.”