Judge wipes smiles off faces of giggling gang of burglars who tormented Black Country homeowners
A gang of burglars who giggled in court while they were being sentenced to more than 30 years in prison are now all behind bars.
Guilty of over 50 counts between them of burglary, theft, fraud, aggravated burglary, conspiracy to burgle, car theft, dangerous driving among other crimes, the gang's crime spree last year across the Black Country and beyond left countless victims in their wake.
The seven men, from the Walsall area, committed so many crimes it took Judge Simon Ward two days to sentence them all at Wolverhampton Crown Court.
Karl Wlodarz, Jordan Shelton, Cameron Worrallo, Nathan Moorhouse, Mark Jones, Thomas Joyner and Alex Johnson all amused themselves by cracking jokes and winding each other up in the dock.
Unimpressed by their attitude, Judge Ward wiped the smiles off their faces by methodically jailing them all.
He said: "I am giving you all custodial sentences, and I will explain why. You operated in teams who went out to burgle homes and commercial properties.
"These were well planned and organised crimes."
He added: "In at least one of the burglaries, it was aggravated - there was a mother and child at home during the time of the burglary.
"You left the woman terrified.
"Each of you are being given custodial sentences."
Victims of the gang bravely testified in trials and gave impact statements about how their crimes had wrecked their lives and left them feeling vulnerable.
"One of your victims had moved to the countryside to feel safe," Judge Ward told the gang. "However, after you targeted her home she could no longer feel safe in her own home and she had to leave."
