A hapless crook caused £2,000-worth of damage by smashing a window in order to burgle a shop of just £30-worth of wine.
Richard Temple, who once needed facial reconstruction after crashing his car while high on drugs, broke into Home Bargains, in North Shields, in the middle of the night to help himself to the booze. Unfortunately for the 38-year-old, he not only left blood at the scene but was also captured on the store's CCTV and was easily identified, a court heard.
The thief, of Prince Consort Road, in Gateshead, was in the dock at North Tyneside Magistrates' Court this week to plead guilty to burglary of a non-dwelling. His case was adjourned for the preparation of a pre-sentence report until July 5 and he was released on conditional bail until that date.
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Prosecutor, Rebecca Gibson, said Temple used a drain cover to smash a window at Home Bargains on May 28 this year. She added: "The store manager viewed CCTV and saw a male cause the damage and enter the store through the broken window and take four bottles of wine.
"The CCTV is sent to the police. There was also blood left on the smashed window. No forensic analysis was carried out as police conducted their own enquiries and that led them to believe that the defendant was responsible."
The court heard that Temple, who has 17 offences on his record with his last being for drug driving in ay 2021, was arrested but gave no comment in interview. It was also established that he'd caused up to £2,500-worth of damage to the window.
Stuart Athey, defending, said Temple suffered serious injuries from crashing his car in 2021 and his memory had suffered. Mr Athey added: "He doesn't recall this incident at all. He told police that at the beginning of the interview before entering no comments. He's disappointed in himself. He's committed a serious offence for stealing less than £30-worth of wine."
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