Career burglar who 'inflicted misery upon his victims' is jailed for six-and-a-half years at Northampton court

A 46-year-old thief has been jailed for six-and-a-half years for two break-ins and an attempted burglary in and around Northampton.

Bryan Burke, of Blisworth, was sentenced at Northampton Crown Court this week after admitting stealing a number of "priceless" items from houses in Delapre and Horton, including attempting to take a motorcycle.

The attempted burglary took place in Stoke Bruerne.

Burke was quickly identified by officers from Northamptonshire Police's Operation Crooked squad through appeals to the public via the Chronicle & Echo using CCTV images. A subsequent search of a property linked to Burke, yielded recovery of some of the stolen items which were returned to their owner.

Lead Investigator, PC Mark Edkins, from the police burglary team, said: “Burke is a career burglar and poses a real threat to Northamptonshire home owners so I am pleased to say he has been removed from our streets.

"Burke brought misery upon his victims by stealing priceless items from their homes. This sentence won’t replace those items but hopefully it will provide some comfort and display that when you are caught by the burglary team, you will be dealt with robustly.

“In the end, Burke had no choice but to plead guilty, given the strength of evidence presented against him.

“This case alongside numerous others shows the value of you or your neighbours having CCTV to bring offenders to justice and I would recommend anyone looking to improve security to make CCTV their priority.”

Last year, Burke's brother Paul, 41, was jailed for a month after pleading guilty to handling stolen goods and four counts of fraud in connection with the burglary in Horton where stolen bank cards were subsequently used fraudulently at a supermarket in Northampton.

Operation Crooked is the Northamptonshire force's campaign to reduce burglary -- a top priority for Chief Constable Nick Adderley - and has helped produce stunning results since the crack squad was formed last April.

Burglaries in the county are at a 12-year-low after a 34 per cent drop in break-ins with 1,000 fewer victims and more than 250 arrests landing a string of high-profile convictions.