Burglar found in Co-op store’s warehouse

A burglar won praise from magistrates after telling them he hoped to change his ways, quit drugs and go to college.
tis. Harrogate Magistrates Court. 311208ARpic1.tis. Harrogate Magistrates Court. 311208ARpic1.
tis. Harrogate Magistrates Court. 311208ARpic1.

Daniel Edmund Brooks appeared in court at Harrogate last Thursday to plead guilty to burglary at a Co-operative store in King Edward’s Drive, where he had been found in the warehouse area, telling staff he was hiding from someone.

But after 24-year-old Brooks had left it was found a £200 iphone was missing and a look at the store’s CCTV footage revealed he was to blame.

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In mitigation Clive Farndon said at the time of the offence, last December, Brooks had been taking drugs.

It was a familiar cycle of theft for sale to feed a habit that had unfolded with Brooks currently serving an 18-month prison sentence, imposed by a York Crown Court judge in January, for five offences of dishonesty, breach of a suspended sentence order and breach of a community order.

Mr Farndon said if the burglary had been dealt with at the same time, it was unlikely his sentence would have been longer.

With Brooks’s likely release fixed for October 23 the court was invited to impose a concurrent prison term which would not take him beyond that date.

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And, said Mr Farndon, while he had been in Hull Prison, Brooks had taken positive steps to end his drug addiction and had begun education and training, something he had enjoyed.

So much so, that he had made enquiries about getting funding to go to Harrogate College when his spell behind bars ended.

The court read a letter penned by Brooks outlining his intentions, with court chairman Caroline Campbell telling him it must have been a really hard task for him to tackle.

The court was encouraged by the things he had written and hopefully he would put them into practice.

Mrs Campbell sentenced Brooks to six weeks in prison with the sentence to run concurrent with his 18-month term.

Costs of £85, an £80 victim surcharge and £200 compensation were also imposed.