Young burglars caught after going for breakfast in stolen car

ITV News

3 days ago

Two young burglars who stole a luxury car in Nottinghamshire have been sentenced after they were caught on CCTV going for breakfast in the stolen vehicle.
Rhys Abbott, 20, and Roman Stevenson, 19, stole the £170,000 vehicle before going on to fill it up with fuel and stop at a restaurant to get something to eat.
The pair broke into a house in High View Avenue, Keyworth, before stealing the keys to the Range Rover Evoque Sport that was parked outside.
Police were called and detectives found that the car had been spotted at a petrol station in Loughborough shortly after it was stolen around 5:30am on 17 March.
Footage showed Abbott filling the car with petrol before going into the petrol station and paying in cash.
Then, at around 10am on the same morning, the pair arrived at Heart of England Conference and Events Centre near Coventry, where CCTV captured them stopping for food at its on-site restaurant.
The CCTV images meant police could identify the two men and they were later arrested and taken into custody for questioning.
In his police interview, Abbott denied being involved in the burglary and claimed he was picked up by the Range Rover after agreeing to a 'paid job' in order to clear a drug-debt.
But his story was discredited when detectives found CCTV that showed two people walking towards the Keyworth house shortly before it was burgled.
One of the individuals could be seen wearing clothing that matched what Abbott had been wearing that same morning. The other person was wearing a coat with the same reflective patches on the back, as worn by Stevenson.
Subsequently, both men were charged with burglary and theft.
Abbott, of London Road, Leicester, and Stevenson, of Acacia Crescent, Bedworth, both pleaded guilty.
They appeared at Nottingham Crown Court and were each sentenced to 18 months in a young offenders institution.
Following the sentencing, Detective Sergeant James Hirst, of Nottinghamshire Police 's county burglary team, said: 'This matter understandably caused a great deal of distress and anxiety to the victim, who was asleep upstairs when the burglary took place.
'We worked very hard to identify the offenders and it is testament to the quality of the investigation and the compelling evidence that was secured that both Abbott and Stevenson entered guilty pleas.
'These men may have proven themselves to be pretty woeful criminals and I am pleased we have been able to bring them to justice.'