The Chronicle

Woman left terrified in her own bed by burglar

- By ROB KENNEDY Court reporter rob.kennedy@ncjmedia.co.uk

A MUM was left terrified in her own home after waking to find a burglar lurking in her bedroom while “off his face”.

The victim had gone to bed while her partner was snoozing on the sofa and their two young children were also asleep.

When the woman woke to see a figure standing over her, she initially thought it was her partner but was horrified and “hysterical” to see it was stranger Edward Brown, who had smashed his way into the house in Blyth.

The woman, who attended Newcastle Crown Court to read out her victim impact statement, said: “My home has always been a safe place, but this has now been taken away from me.

“It left me sickened somebody thought they had the right to enter my property and take from us.

“I continue to wake up with the fear of seeing someone standing over the side of my bed.

“To have my nine-year-old wake up to the sound of me screaming is something which will stay with him for a long time and with me forever.”

While the items stolen were

recovered, she said their emotional and psychologi­cal security cannot be replaced.

The woman added: “This person has no right to take this away from me. It will be a long time before me and my family feel safe again.” Her partner added: “This has been a happy home for three years but this has changed everything.

“It is not the things which were taken but the fact this man has walked round the house while my partner was sleeping and I am concerned he may have gone into the children’s bedrooms as well.”

The break-in took place at the family home on Thorneybur­n Way, Blyth, on October 15 this year.

At around 10.30pm the mum went to bed and her children, aged nine and 15 months, were asleep while her partner had dozed off on the sofa.

Peter Schofield, prosecutin­g, said: “What then took place in the next 20 or 30 minutes is the defendant came into the back garden area, smashed the door of the patio extension and wandered into the house.

“He went upstairs and into the bedroom where the complainan­t was.

“She was aware, vaguely, of a shape which she thought was her partner. She quickly realised it was not him.”

Brown said: “I’m drunk, I’m drunk” and left the bedroom and went downstairs.

A neighbour saw Brown using a pole to break in and rang the police, who quickly caught him. Items he had stolen, including car keys, a lawnmower and a box of pens, were recovered.

He claimed he thought he had gone to a friend’s house.

Brown, 44, of no fixed address but of Blyth, has 37 previous conviction­s, including two for burglary, one for attempted burglary, two for conspiracy to supply heroin, possession with intent to supply a class A drug and being concerned in the supply of a Class A drug. He pleaded guilty to burglary and was sentenced to 16 months in prison and given an indefinite restrainin­g order to stay away from the street where the victims live. Richard Bloomfield, defending, said: “He had taken temazepam and, as it is often said, he was off his face.” Mr Bloomfield added Brown “felt really horrible for what he had done.”

It left me sickened somebody thought they had the right to enter my property and take from us.

Victim

 ??  ?? Edward Brown, who burgled a family home in Blyth
Edward Brown, who burgled a family home in Blyth

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