Eagle-eyed Leeds neighbour nabbed Samsung TV-stealing house burglar
An opportunist burglar who stole a 55-inch TV from a home was caught after a neighbour spotted him hours later.
Shane Earp was seen on CCTV climbing through the unsecure kitchen window of the property in Harehills and leaving with the TV.
But before police had chance to catch him, neighbours later recognised him and detained him, along with the householder of the burgled property.
Earp was given an additional 18 months’ jail by Judge Kate Rayfield at Leeds Crown Court this week, to run consecutively to an existing 27-month sentence he is serving for other break-ins.
The court was told that the victim was asleep in the early hours of August 16 last year, when Earp got into the property at 1am.
He left eight minutes later with the large TV. He was confronted by a neighbour but carried on, prosecutor Zanisha Herbert told the court.
But the 33-year-old was detained a short time later. When police turned up to arrest him, he refused to put his seatbelt on in the back of the vehicle and hurled abuse at the officer, calling him a “c***” and “qu***”.
At the station he refused to take a drugs test.
Earp, of Foundry Avenue, Harehills, admitted the dwelling burglary, a public order offence and refusing to provide a sample for analysis.
He has 15 previous convictions for 24 offences. He appeared in court over a video link from HMP Leeds.
Mitigating, Michael Walsh said Earp was homeless at the time and said: “Through me he wishes to apologise to the family and to West Yorkshire Police.
“He understands it’s got to be custody.”