Limping burglar was carrying a 60-inch TV
A wounded burglar who twice broke into a student accommodation block in Belfast for attempts to steal wall-mounted televisions has been jailed for eight months.
Daniel Mark Sheehan, 37, was caught after being spotted limping through Botanic Studios while carrying a 60-inch set he dropped at the scene.
He felt under threat to carry out the raids after suffering “life changing” injuries in an earlier beating, a judge was told.
Sheehan, of College Square North in the city, admitted charges of burglary with intent to steal, criminal damage and common assault.
Belfast Magistrates’ Court heard CCTV cameras showed him entering the studios on the Dublin Road for the first time in the early hours of December 17 last year.
The intruder broke in through a rear fire door, went to a fridge and drank a carton of milk.
Limping in the footage, he then took a remote control and a television down from the wall in the common room.
“He lifted the 60-inch TV valued at £300 and proceeded to struggle with it, dropping it on its side and cracking the top right of the screen.” a prosecution lawyer said.
Realising the set was damaged, he discarded it by a bin and left the premises.
The same intruder forced his way into the studios the following morning to take another television off one of the walls before members of staff intervened.
During the confrontation he threatened to stab them while poking what appeared to be a remote control in his pocket towards the victims.
Police were alerted and detained Sheehan as he walked towards nearby Botanic Avenue.
Two remote controls, a power cable and HDMI adaptor were located on him.
“The defendant could easily be identified in the footage, wearing the same clothes and having a distinctive gait with a limp,” the lawyer added.
Defence solicitor Eoghan McKenna told the court the burglaries took place after Sheehan had been subjected to a serious assault over a debt.
“The injuries he received are going to be life changing,” Mr McKenna disclosed.
“He was told to get anything valuable as quickly as he possibly could to pay back that debt.
“Mr Sheehan didn’t want to go as far as (claiming) duress… but he felt that he was under threat to get involved in this incident.”
Sentencing him to eight months in custody, District Judge George Conner declined the prosecution’s request for £1,800 compensation to cover the damage to the doors and television.
He said: “Given his circumstances and how he came to be in this situation I think an order of restitution would be meaningless.”