Romanian crime spree gang jailed
A gang of Romanian burglars that plundered homes across Staffordshire, stealing valuable and sentimental items, has been caged for a total of more than 10 years.
Florin Codreanu, Cristinel Diaconu, Morian Dobre and Marian Boroiban will be deported on their release.
They targeted rural properties and disabled alarms and CCTV before ransacking the homes looking for loot. Stafford Crown Court heard how they took sentimental jewellery and trophies and expensive house- hold items during the raids.
Mr Pat Sullivan, prosecuting, said Brenda Huber who lives in a cottage in Chebsey, near Stafford, had all her late mother's jewellery stolen just days after the funeral. In another of the gang's raids, motor racing enthusiast Peter Harvey, of Ellenhall, near Eccleshall, lost his irreplaceable collection of trophies.
Other properties in the area to be targeted included houses in Lower Bromstead, near Gnosall, and Blithbury Road, Rugeley.
At least 14 homes in Staffordshire were raided between February and May this year before the gang was caught on May 21 when its car was spotted.
Codreanu, aged 25, and Diaconu, 31, both of Wellesley Road, Oldbury, and Dobre, 31, of Clifton Road, Birmingham, admitted conspiracy to burgle. Boroiban, 34, of no fixed abode, admitted burgling a house in Worcester.
Judge John Maxwell said: "I make a recommendation that all of you should be deported. I make it because your presence in the UK causes its citizens great problems." Diaconu was jailed for 45 months, Codreanu for 30 months, Dobre for 27 months and Boroiban was handed a 20-month jail term.
