A teenage burglar caught by CCTV inside a letting agent’s premises begged to be sent to jail.
Kyle Kelbie, 19, lost both his parents within ten days of each other.
He had been drinking heavily and said he had no memory of the incident, but accepted he was filmed in the premises of the agent, said in the local press to be Purple Homes Letting.
He pleaded guilty to burglary and theft of a charity box and medication.
Kelbie had travelled from Dundee to Lancashire when his father was dying of cancer. His mother died the following week.
Zabair Afzal, defending, told Blackburn Magistrates Court: “He says he has been drinking very heavily to block out his pain and escape from his personal grief.
“Whatever happens today he will be taken back to Dundee where he is in breach of a probation order and he believes a spell in prison would help him sort his head out.”
He was jailed for 12 weeks.
Comments (3)
This story is just plain sad.
I hope the agent isn’t too traumatised by the burglary but mainly that the kid is okay. He’s clearly been through enough.
But now he also has a prison record on his CV, limiting his opportunities for work. Surely there was someone who could have helped rather than this.
AgentV…. interestingly I work with a company who provide a rehabilitation programme for ex-offenders seeking to take a different path…. and it seems to work, it involves developing/refurbishing property and training those who seek a chance to change their lives… remembering how hard it can be (impossible) to get a job after being released from prison.
I rarely work with Developers as I have little interest in financing their Range Rovers and Rolex Watches.
This project interested me so I got involved. So many on the wrong path need a chance, albeit they still have to want to make it work, with assistance along the way.
Not a service which PB etc offer! Local Estate Agents aren’t always about selling or letting property.