Three-strike burglar jailed for raid on student house

A three-strike burglar who raided a student’s home just hours after being in court for the same offence is back behind bars.

Jessica Prentice was caught red-handed with the MacBook computer, wallet and 17 packets of cigarettes she had stolen from the student house on the steps of Durham Crown Court, where she had only been dealt with at earlier that day.

The 34-year-old, along with accomplice Kasey Willis, sneaked into the student home in Durham on January 28 after a door had been left open.

A neighbour, who knew the student was out at the time, witnessed the pair acting suspiciously around the house and contacted the victim who returned to find their possessions missing.

Thankfully the stolen computer had a tracker device attached which led the student and their neighbour to the nearby court steps where Prentice and Willis were smoking some of the stolen cigarettes.

The pair claimed to have retrieved the stolen property from the ‘real’ burglars and should be rewarded but the police were called and both arrested with the stolen items still on them.

Despite giving no comment interviews, both were charged with burglary and put before the court.

Both pleaded guilty and appeared by video link at Teesside Crown Court on Friday, March 21.

Prentice, of no fixed abode, was sentenced to two years and four months in prison and ordered to pay £228.

Willis, 32, of Hartlepool, was sentenced to eight months in prison and ordered to pay £187.

Sergeant Daniel Beardmore, of the Durham City Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: “Prentice and Willis are not sophisticated burglars but clearly saw and took the opportunity to snatch belongings from an unsecure house.

“We are glad they are off the streets and we will always pursue anyone who behaves in this unacceptable way.

“We’d also like to take this opportunity to remind residents, and students in particular, to always make sure their homes are secure and deter opportunistic thieves.”

Don’t let them take what’s yours.

Here is your reminder…

• close and lock all your doors and windows, even if you’re only going out for a few minutes
• make sure that any valuables are out of sight
• keep handbags away from the letterbox or cat flap and hide all keys including car keys, as a thief could hook keys or valuables through even a small opening
• never leave car documents or ID in obvious places such as kitchens or hallways
• in the evening, shut the curtains and leave lights on
• if you’re out all day, then it’s advisable to use a timer device to automatically turn lights and a radio on at night
• set your burglar alarm
• make sure the side gate is locked
• lock your shed or garage
• lock your bike inside a secure shed or garage, to a robust fitting bolted to the ground or wall, like a ground anchor

For more advice https://www.durham.police.uk/.../prot.../secure-shed-garage/

Please continue to report theft to police via 101.

If a crime is in progress, please call 999.

Alternatively, you can report online here https://www.durham.police.uk/.../af/how-to-report-a-crime/