Burglars who broke into town firm caught on lorry’s dash cam

A former worker at a Derbyshire civil engineering firm used his knowledge of the alarm system to break into it and help a co-defendant steal two high-value trailers from inside.

Derby Crown Court^[1] heard how Jacob Hart, Darren Steel and Michael Renshaw carried out a reconnaissance journey to the company in Stanton-by-Dale^[2] to determine how best to sneak in and steal from it the night before the actual break-in. And on the night they carried out the crime, they did not realise they had been captured on dashcam footage carrying out their illegal act.

Handing each of the trio non-custodial sentences, Judge Shaun Smith KC said:^[3] “Right you three, stand up. Have absolutely no doubt that had I been sentencing you closer to the time it happened you would be going to prison, no doubt about that at all.

“But lots of things have happened in this case and two years later you have kept out of trouble. Hart, you were instrumental in the burglary because you knew the property.”

Catherine Picardo, prosecuting, said the burglary took place in March 2021 at Map Building and Civil Supplies, in Littlewell Lane. She said: “Mr Hart was working there and left on, it seems, good terms but he did not return the key he held and he knew the alarm code. On March 19 the three defendants attended the premises, got in and turned the alarm system off.

“A fuel card was taken and was used twice. That was something of a reconnaissance as the following evening CCTV captured the burglary taking place.

“One of them was carrying a crowbar and the three of them got into one of the cabs but didn’t realise its dash cam was on and a vehicle was driven away from the site.”

Miss Picardo said twice the defendants returned to the firm and two trailers were taken worth more than £100,000 combined. But both have since been recovered. She said Rensahw was later arrested asleep in the cab of a different lorry and when Hart was arrested he was found with 61 counterfeit £20 notes.

Hart, 32, of Bank Street, Somercotes, pleaded guilty to burglary and possession of counterfeit currency. He was handed a 20-month jail sentence, suspended for 21 months and was ordered to carry out 200 hours unpaid work and to attend 10 rehabilitation sessions.

Lucy Jones, his barrister, said her client would be “very relieved” to hear he was not being sent immediately to prison.

Steel, 39, of Everest Drive, Somercotes, pleaded guilty to burglary and was handed a 15-month custodial term, also suspended for 21 months, with 150 hours unpaid work and 10 rehabilitation sessions.

And Renshaw, 46, of Wood Street, Somercotes, pleaded guilty to burglary and two counts of disguising criminal property. His previous convictions include a suspended sentence from 2019 for carrying out the same type of offences,

He was handed a two-year community order under a strict warning from the judge that if he offended again during that time in any way he would be sent to prison for 30 months. Laura Pitman, mitigating, said her client is working as a lorry driver for a company in Norfolk who were aware of his past offending and these court proceedings. She said he has not offended in any way since the Stanton-by-Dale burglary more than two years ago.

References

1. ^{^} Derby Crown Court (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
2. ^{^} in Stanton-by-Dale (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
3. ^{^} Judge Shaun Smith KC said: (www.derbytelegraph.co.uk)
4. ^{^} Do you support any of the following strikes? (xd.wayin.com)