Burglar took part in Shotton Colliery Greggs' raid and Coxhoe break-in

Liam Robert Facey is now back behind bars for his part in the two-night crime spree in January.

He was one of up to four people seen on CCTV coverage in a Land Rover vehicle which reversed into the closed Greggs store, on Shotton Colliery Industrial Estate, near Peterlee, shortly after 9pm on Monday January 9.

Durham Crown Court heard a significant amount of damage was caused to the premises, on Cook Way, but all that was taken was a charity collection bucket kept near the till area.

Read more: Police investigating after Greggs in Shotton Colliery is damaged

Martin Towers, prosecuting, said the offenders involved were on site for three minutes, departing only with the charity money.

The store manager said due to the scale of the damage caused, the shop could not be opened for business the following day, with a subsequent loss in takings.

Mr Towers said almost 24 hours after the Greggs raid, a woman drove past the Coxhoe home of her parents, who were away on holiday at the time.

As she passed the property, on Station Road West, she noticed lights were on in the house, torch lights were illuminated in the garden, doors were open and a Land Rover vehicle was parked outside.

She called at her aunt and uncle’s home nearby and all three then went back to check on her parents’ property.

As they approached it appeared that it was being burgled and they disturbed two men, one in a balaclava mask, who fled the house and ran past them.

Mr Towers said the intruders made good their escape, and the family members went in to discover jewellery had been taken from a bedroom, where a knife was recovered having been removed from a block in the kitchen.

Later that evening there was a police chase of the Land Rover, which was bearing no registration plates.

Following the abandonment of the vehicle pursuit, Facey attempted to hide, but he was found and arrested on suspicion of involvement in both burglary offences.

Foot prints left at the scene of both break-ins linked him to each of the crimes.

Arising from his arrest, the 23-year-old defendant, formerly of Easington Lane, now of no fixed abode, was recalled to prison to serve part of the unserved portion of his previous sentence.

He admitted both of the January burglaries at a hearing last month.

The sentencing hearing was told Facey has 66 offences on his record, including a domestic burglary from February 2018.

His recall to prison was for the unserved part of a 28-month prison sentence imposed in February 2021, for wounding, for which the expiry date is June 14.

Jane Waugh, in mitigation, said the defendant did not enter the burgled house with a knife, as it was taken from within the property and abandoned in the bedroom.

She said the Greggs offence did not appear to have been particularly well-planned, given the nature of the forced entry, with only a charity bucket taken for all the efforts of those involved.

Read more: Easington Lane man charged after ramraid at Greggs in Shotton Colliery

Miss Waugh said after his previous release from prison, the defendant began well on licence, but, “took a turn for the worse”, getting involved in the burglaries on successive nights.

She said that since his prison recall he has fared well and now has a cleaning job on his wing.

Judge James Adkin told the defendant that he appeared to be one of a number of perpetrators in the offences.

Read next:

* Teenage driver leads police on 100mph chase on A19

* Teen led police on 120mph chase on wrong side of the A19

* Two units targeted by ram raiders on industrial estate near Stanley

Subscribe to a Premium Plus package to The Northern Echo from as little as £1.50 per week and read more quality stories and extras. Click here

The judge said that having, apparently, made some progress during his initial licence period, “something happened, and things spiralled, leading to the targeted offences of burglary".

He said the aim appeared to be to gain the maximum amount of money or items of value in both offences.

Judge Adkin imposed a total prison sentence of 42 months, including three years for the house burglary, with six-months added for the defendant's involvement in the ram raid.