A scrap dealer who spotted a family packing their car for a holiday and later burgled their home has been sentenced to 18 months in prison, a court heard. James Connors, 45, donned a mask and gloves and drove a roundabout route to avoid number plate recognition cameras before breaking into the property in the dead of night.
Holiday interrupted by burglary
Swansea Crown Court heard that the victims were enjoying a break at a Center Parcs resort when they received a notification from their video doorbell that someone was at their property. They alerted the police. The man who carried out the burglary with Connors has never been identified and remains at large.
Caitlin Brazil, prosecuting, told the court that on the morning of April 21 last year the complainant was loading suitcases into his car outside the family home in Bryncoch, Neath, when he saw a white pick-up truck driving down the road. The barrister said the driver seemed to be 'staring intently' at him as he drove by.
The family set off on their holiday, and in the early hours of April 24 the complainant was woken by a Ring doorbell notification. When he checked the live video footage, he saw a masked and gloved man with a screwdriver breaking in. The homeowner dialled 999.
The court heard that the family cut short their Center Parcs holiday and returned home to find someone had smashed through the rear patio doors. Children's toys were covered in broken glass, but nothing had been taken from the property.
Police investigation and evidence
Police launched an investigation, gathering forensic evidence and CCTV footage. Inquiries led officers to the Millstream Way travellers site in Swansea Vale, where they found the defendant and the white pick-up truck. In the vehicle, officers found a pair of gloves that were forensically examined and found to contain 300 fragments of glass matching the smashed patio doors.
CCTV footage showed the defendant's van travelling to the Bryncoch area and parking in a lay-by before two men—Connors and an unidentified male—walked off in the direction of the burgled house. The van was seen driving away 18 minutes after the video doorbell had been activated.
The prosecution case was that Connors had 'scouted out' the property before burgling it. On the night of the burglary, he wore gloves and a balaclava to hide his identity and drove via back roads to avoid automatic number plate recognition cameras.
Defendant's contradictory accounts
In his police interview, Connors gave 'contradictory accounts' and denied being the person seen on CCTV. He said he had been asleep in bed at the time of the burglary and claimed someone must have stolen his van and used it without his knowledge before returning it. He pleaded not guilty and the matter went to trial.
James Connors, of Millstream Way, Swansea Vale, Swansea, had previously been convicted at trial of burglary. He has two previous convictions for two offences, the last being a theft matter in 2008.
Alycia Carpanini, for Connors, said her client accepted the jury's finding and had 'opened up' about his mental health difficulties. She said Connors was a father of nine who had not been able to work as a scrapman for around a year 'due to international problems', and received between £1,400 and £1,500 per month from benefits.
Judge's remarks and sentence
Judge Geraint Walters told Connors it was clear that having seen the victim packing suitcases into his car he had decided to burgle the property and returned a few days later 'tooled up in the dead of night' to carry out the plan. The judge said the defendant had caused 'great upset' to his victims, noting that the real mischief of burglary was not so much the monetary cost but the fact it leaves victims feeling unsafe in their own homes.
The judge noted that Connors spent much of his time being interviewed by a probation officer challenging the evidential basis of his conviction, and seemed to believe he had been wrongly convicted. Judge Walters said that stance 'does not bode well' for Connors engaging with probation on a sentence involving non-immediate custody. He told the defendant: 'I am not satisfied you will not do anything other than play along with the wholly inadequate alternative to custody recommended in the pre-sentence report.'
Connors was sentenced to 18 months in prison. He will serve up to half the sentence in custody before being released on licence to serve the remainder in the community. The 196 days he has spent on remand or on curfew will count against the sentence.
