Trail of prints led cops to bungling burglars
TWO hapless burglars who climbed through vandal paint were snared after leaving a trail of hand marks and finger prints during a bungled crime spree in Runcorn.
Jamie John James, 28, and William Napier, 43, both from Newcastle, were both staying in the town to undergo heroin drug detoxification at a residential rehab centre but fell into their old ways after taking some unidentified pills and bingeing on booze, Chester Crown Court heard last Week.
Jayne Morris, prosecuting, said the pair struck at 2am on Monday, August 19, with CCTV capturing the duo as they stumbled from one failed attempted break-in to the next.
First they targeted Runcorn Library on Granville Street where their hands became covered in vandal paint while climbing over the back gate.
CCTV had spotted one of them carrying some kind of tool for trying to gain entry and the keyhole cover and back door were later found damaged.
They then left a door handle ‘covered in fingerprints and handprints’ at Shaw’s butchers on Church Street, as well as on the window and even on the outdoor toilet.
Afterwards, they attempted to break into a flat above the row of shops but a security light flashed once alerting the occupant Sali Ahmed, who at first thought it was a cat, but when it flashed a second time went outside to investigate and spotted the duo, causing them to flee.
A victim personal statement read to the court said Mr Ahmed was now worried about leaving his family at home, as they had been in at the time of the offence.
Vandal paint on the door handle again incriminated the pair – who were branded ‘unsophisticated’ by presiding judge Recorder Steven Everett.
The pair were not done though, and CCTV filmed them trying to kick their way into Vape Hut, also on Church Street.
Police spotted the suspects, who were ‘covered in vandal paint’, and arrested them.
James soon became aggressive and began headbutting the wall of his cell and thrust himself
● towards the officers, who searched him and found two yellow tablets, that were not subsequently tested but may have been zopiclone sleeping pills.
They gave no comment answers in interview but later pleaded guilty to four counts of attempted burglary.
James had 26 convictions for 48 offences including dishonesty, burglary, and Section 18 assault.
Napier had 60 convictions for 137 offences ranging including dishonesty and burglary.
Both were on suspended sentence orders at the time of the Runcorn spree and had been moved from Newcastle under medical referrals to undergo drug treatment.
Michael Davies, defending James, said his client was now clean of drugs, had pleaded guilty, and was in Runcorn after selfreferring for drug treatment, which had failed after he was taken off his heroin substitute medicine by drug workers and had been going ‘cold turkey’ for three weeks instead, made worse when he was given a sleeping pill and went drinking.
The court heard James claimed that Napier had given him zopiclone.
Mr Davies said James has found extra motivation now to turn his life around as his partner is pregnant and he is maturing as he approaches 30.
Jemma Gordon, appearing for Napier, said Napier had pleaded guilty and ‘understands he’s in a difficult position by virtue of his record’.
She added that he had been ‘given a chance’ by his last suspended sentence and was now ‘deeply ashamed’ but had gone clean in prison and was off methadone.
Recorder Everett sentenced James, of Dipton
Avenue, Newcastle, to a total of 23 months and one week in prison, and Napier, of Bicknell House, Byker, Newcastle, to three years behind bars and ordered a victim surcharge to be paid.
He told the court that victims of burglary are ‘never the same again’.
In his summing-up, he said: “Both of you were in there to detox.
“Both of you knew the problems and dangers that heroin for example causes and how it’s led you into this total life of crime for both of you.
“Both of you knew that if you took drugs you would be breaching the trust of the residential home.
“Secondly you’re committing an offence being in possession of drugs, and steadily it led you to commit these offences.
“That you say you lost your self control and didn’t know what you were doing.”
He added: “And what do you do?
“You were tanked up on either drugs or drink, off you went again committing the sort of offences you, I regret to say, are so used to committing.”
Speaking after the hearing, Detective Constable Paul Cullen, who led the investigation, said: “I would like to thank the town centre CCTV operators for capturing the criminal activities of the bungling burglars in Runcorn town centre in the early hours of Monday, August 19 and for reporting them to the police.
“They enabled us to catch Jamie James and William Napier redhanded, which would have literally been the case had the paint been red.
“With the CCTV footage and the anti-vandal grease and paint that the pair left on the buildings they tried to break into, they were always going to be convicted for the offences.
“James and Napier targeted a library and business premises.
“They also tried to burgle a flat that was occupied, targeting people in the one place they should be able to feel most safe their own home.
“I am delighted the pair have now been handed prison sentences and I hope that this case deters others from coming to Runcorn or elsewhere in Cheshire to commit offences.
“James and Napier have been prolific theft and burglary offenders in the North East of England and I hope that whilst servicing their custodial sentences they reflect on the lives they have been leading and change their ways.”