Dad burgled ex's Leeds home to steal family passports and halt dream holiday to Florida
A disgruntled dad burgled his ex partner’s home to steal the family passports to prevent a dream trip to Florida days later- then told her to drop the charges if she wanted them back.
Marcus Clarke got into the property on Boggart Hill in Seacroft while the woman was on the school run on the morning of March 8 this year, Leeds Crown Court heard.
The 31-year-old was out on licence at the time, having been jailed in 2018 for drug dealing. Prosecutor Zanesha Herbert said Clarke had gone to the property and targeted the documents on purpose.
Clarke arranged to meet the woman the next day and told her that the passports were safe, but said to get them back he wanted his name added to a birth certificate, and that she should drop the burglary report. Out of desperation, she did try to drop the charge.
The pair had known each other since around 2014, had a child together but had become estranged in the autumn of last year.
Despite the woman’s attempts to drop the burglary charge, police went looking for Clarke and spotted him driving in Kirkstall on March 10. He drove off at speed when they tried to pull him over so they gave chase.
Reaching dangerous speeds, he then abandoned the car near Kirkstall Abbey and fled on foot, but was chased an arrested at a JD Sports store nearby. During his police interview he accused his ex of lying, but then gave no other comments.
He later admitted burglary and dangerous driving. A charge of intimidating a witness was left to lie on file. Clarke was jailed for 91 months in 2018 for conspiracy to supply drugs. Following his arrest for his latest offences, he was returned to prison on licence.
He appeared in court this week via video link from HMP Leeds. Mitigating on his behalf, Matthew Stewart said: “They had a child together and there was a breakdown of their relationship. Contact with his child stopped and there was an issue in regard to the contact with the child and the name on the birth certificate.
“He was acting out of emotion and frustration. He knows he should have taken an alternative course of conduct. He understands the impact it would have had. He wishes to express through me, the remorse he has for his actions.”
He was said that Clarke, of Holts Crest Way, Leeds, had been working for a courier company, now has a new partner and has another child on the way.
The judge, Recorder Abdul Iqbal KC, told Clarke: “It’s plain to me that you burgled the property to gain access and remove travel documents. You took the passports in your attempt to place pressure on her. There was a degree of intimidation. You demanded she drop the burglary case if she wanted her passports back.”
He jailed Clarke for 26 months, but it must run concurrently to his existing sentence. He is due for release in November next year. He was also given a 29-month driving ban.