Teenager locked up for 22 house raids
A teenager who admitted breaking into 22 different homes in little over 12 months has been locked up for two years.
A teenager who admitted breaking into 22 different homes in little over 12 months has been locked up for two years.
Reece Parkes, of Woodfort Road, Great Barr, stole goods worth more than £35,000 during his crimewave.
The 18-year-old stole computers, jewellery and electrical equipment before selling them on for profit. In one raid in Page's Lane, Great Barr, he smashed his way into a house while the owner was out celebrating on New Year's Eve. He was caught after he left footprints at the scene of another break-in.
Parkes was sentenced to two years in a young offender's institution after admitting two of the raids and asking for the other 20 to be taken into consideration when he appeared at Wolverhampton Crown Court yesterday.
Mr Paul Reid, prosecuting, said Parkes was eventually captured after a raid at an address in Waddington Avenue, Great Barr, on October 16.
The court heard that he stole £4,000 worth of goods including a computer and jewellery.
After breaking in through a kitchen window, Parkes left three footprints in the house, which police officers matched to his trainers.
He committed the New Year's Eve offence – in which he was one of a gang of four who made off with £9,000 worth of equipment – while he was on bail for the first break-in.
The other offences were committed during late 2008 and throughout 2009 at undisclosed addresses in Great Barr.
The court heard that in total, the break-ins netted equipment worth about £22,000.
Parkes claimed that during many of the break-ins, he was acting as part of a larger gang.
Mr Robert Cowley, representing Parkes, who has been kicked out of the family home by his mother, said he was stealing to pay for food and clothes.
"While he admits greed was a partial motivation, this is a young man who was out of education and out of work and was struggling with his circumstances," he said.
Passing sentence, Judge Michael Challinor said: "You are responsible for a significant amount of crime which has resulted in a significant amount of distress.
"You must serve a custodial sentence."
