12 years for distraction burglaries

Two men who deliberately targeted the elderly in a serious of distraction burglaries in Cheltenham, have been sent to jail.

30-year-old James Paul Johnson of Princess Elizabeth Way was convicted of three counts of distraction burglary and one count of theft from a person and given nine years.

46-year-old Andrew Spence of Monkscroft was convicted of one count of distraction burglary and sentenced to three and a half years.

The offences took place over 10-days last November, on three separate occasions Johnson targeted a vulnerable 94-year-old man living in Leckhampton, on two occasions he gained entry to home claiming to be a police officer.
 
Detective Constable Jackie Rosewell was leading the investigation, she says;

“We are pleased that these men have been convicted and the sentences reflect the crime.

“These kinds of burglaries are always so despicable because the offenders deliberately target the most vulnerable members of the community.

“It is not acceptable that their actions have left the victim feeling unsafe in his own home.”