Burglars jailed for raids on Staffordshire post offices

A pair of burglars who raided two village post offices before leading police on a high speed chase along the M6 have been jailed by a judge.

The post offices in Gnosall, near Stafford, and Barton under Needwood, near Lichfield, were targeted by Michael Warrilow and Paul Corness on the same night.

Their first target was Gnosall, where the pair smashed their way into the post office in Audmore Road at around 3.40am on February 22, causing £600 damage to locks and doors. But they got away with only about £40 in cash.

A witness had taken a partial registration number of the getaway car and police were on the alert, Mr Pat Sullivan, prosecuting, told Stafford Crown Court.

Four hours later the pair struck at Barton under Needwood, where postmaster Richard Spalding was woken by banging sounds. He looked out to see one of the defendants running away with a sack.

Police spotted the getaway car on the northbound carriageway of the M6 and pursued it. The car was abandoned at a service station and the burglars fled on foot. They were captured hiding in nearby countryside.

Recovered from the car was £4,636 in cash and nearly £6,000 worth of book tokens. Mr Sullivan said it was not clear where the cash had come from and was subject to a hearing under the Police Act, although both defendants had waived their rights to it.

Warrilow, aged 25, and Corness, also 25, both from Liverpool, each admitted two burglary charges in regard to the post offices. Corness also admitted two separate burglaries of a pub and a school in Merthyr Tydfil and was jailed for a total of 44 months. Warrilow was jailed for 20 months.

Recorder Mr Ciaran Rankin told them: "Each of these burglaries are in the highest category.

"The premises were occupied, you drove to the scene some distance from your home town and clearly equipped, they were night time burglaries. You each have appalling criminal records."

Mr Alaric Walmsley, for Warrilow, said his client denied telling a probation officer that it was the victims' own fault for not putting money in the safe.