Burglar who stole up to £12,000 of jewellery in Warrington jailed

                                        A burglar who stole up to £12,000 of jewellery from a house in Warrington has been jailed.

John Pearce burgled two houses in the town before being caught red handed burgling another property in London.

The 44-year-old, from Chester, was sentenced to three years and six months on Thursday 26 November at Liverpool Crown Court.

Pearce targeted the house on Ackers Road on Friday 14 February at some time between 8.35am and 12.30pm when it was unoccupied.

He forced open the back door and searched the property.

He stole a designer handbag, purse and sunglasses and more than 30 pieces of expensive jewellery.

Four days earlier Pearce broke into a house on Paul Street near to the town centre.

While the home was unoccupied, Pearce smashed the patio doors to enter the home and stole a number of items including a laptop and designer handbag.

Pearce’s blood was also found on the curtains and cupboards around the house.

After committing both burglaries Pearce sold the items he had stolen at two pawnbrokers in the town centre and at two others in Liverpool.

He then travelled to London where he was arrested on Monday 24 February by officers at the scene of another property he was burgling.

Despite Pearce answering no comment to the questions put to him his DNA from the blood found at the property on Paul Street identified him and he was recognised by staff he sold the items too.

He was charged and pleaded guilty to his crimes at an earlier hearing.

The items were recovered from the pawnbrokers by police and returned to the owners.

Detective Constable Chris Little, from Warrington’s Local Policing Unit, said: “I am pleased Pearce is now behind bars facing the consequences of his actions.

“He burgled two houses and stole large quantities of expensive jewellery and items in order to sell on in pawnbrokers to make a profit. This, along with his DNA being found at one of the addresses, led to him being identified and subsequently arrested while committing another offence.

“Thankfully we have been able to recover some of the personal possessions he stole and return them to their owners.”

David Keane, Police and Crime Commissioner for Cheshire, said: “Everyone has the right to feel safe in their own home. This type of crime can change that and have a devastating effect on victims and the wider community.

“I would like to praise the work of all the officers involved in the investigation who were able to return some of the items back to their rightful owners and deliver justice for them.”