'Three strikes and you're out' Man stole car from vulnerable elderly man | Preston Crown Court

A burglar broke down in tears in court when a judge sent him to jail for targeting a vulnerable old man.

Timothy Sherriff admitting breaking into the victim’s cottage, stealing his car keys and driving off in his £40,000 Land Rover Discovery.

Preston Crown Court was told the 40-year-old was part of a three-man gang which lay in wait for the old man to leave the house with his son before swooping.

The stolen car was found abandoned six days later with false Irish number plates fitted. Sherriff’s DNA was detected on the steering wheel.

Throughout the hearing Sherriff, who appeared via a video link from HMP Preston, sat with his head in his hands.

When Recorder Kristian Cavanagh passed sentence, he broke down sobbing. The court was told that as this was his fourth burglary conviction, and due to a “three strikes and you’re out” policy by the courts he was subject to a minimum sentence of three years in prison.

Barrister Lewis Hazeldine, prosecuting, told the court that after his arrest Sherriff denied charges of burglary and taking a vehicle without the owner’s consent.

But at a later hearing he changed his plea. On January 6 this year the victim and his son had left the cottage in the village of Fence near Nelson at 6:42pm.

The father was using a walking stick. CCTV showed them walking away and within two minutes three men appeared outside the house. Two went round the back and the third acted as a lookout.

One of the men walked back round the front and knocked on the door to check if anyone was in. He then returned to the back of the property.

The men returned, opened the vehicle and at 6:49pm, while Sherriff drove it away, the other two got into their own car and fled. When the man and his son returned home they discovered the Land Rover had vanished.

The bottom panel of the back door had been kicked in, allowing one of the burglars to gain entry and steal the car keys.

Sherriff, who gave his address as Farm Lane, Hyde, was subsequently arrested and he initially denied any knowledge of the burglary and car theft.

He even told police he thought it was “out of order to commit a burglary targeting an old man with a walking stick”.

The court heard he had 43 previous offences on his record, 12 of them for theft. He had been convicted of burglary in 2009, 2011 and 2013.

Defence barrister Ella Worsley said her client had been the victim of “cuckooing” for several months prior to the burglary. The two other men had been exploiting him because of a drug debt.

Due to his substance abuse he also had mental health issues including anxiety and depression. But he was now clean after spending almost four months in prison on remand.

“He is doing all he can to use his time in custody productively while recognising he is facing more (time in prison). He is fully aware of his situation and he deeply regrets that.”

When Ms Worsley mentioned his children and then his seriously ill father, Sherriff wept openly in the dock.

Recorder Cavanagh told him: “I recognise that you were under a degree of pressure by the group. But the facts are straight forward. “When the victim left home he was using a walking stick. Within minutes a car pulled up and a vehicle was stolen. It was planned.”

He said members of the group had been wearing gloves to hide their identity. The car had Irish plates fitted when it was found.

“You have a bad record. There is a mandatory minimum (sentence) because you were convicted of burglary in 2009, 2011 and 2013. You (also) have convictions including violence and damage.”

He said Sherriff’s family circumstances were sad because his father had a terminal illness and he would now have limited contact with him in the time he had left.

He passed a sentence of four years in prison, reduced by a quarter to three years to reflect his guilty plea, and told him: “It would have been a lot higher but for the mitigation set out (by your barrister).

“Just reflect on the progress you have made in custody to make sure you don’t find yourself back in court again.”

He also disqualified Sherriff from driving for 27 months and ordered him to take an extended test before he can get behind the wheel again.