Wheelchair-bound burglar crawled on hands to steal from Leeds stroke-patient neighbour
Heartless thief knew man was recovering in hospital
A disabled burglar broke into her neighbour’s flat, even crawling on her hands to grab more items.
Danielle Edkins returned to the flat several times knowing the man was in hospital having suffered a stroke.
The 61-year-old admitted charges of dwelling burglary and possessing Class A drugs after she was found with a small amount of crack cocaine on her arrest.
Leeds Crown Court heard that Edkins, who is an amputee with one leg, lived in a block of flats on Simmons Court, Cross Green. The flats are for people with complex health issues.
In the early hours of October 28 last year, Edkins was seen on CCTV checking the door handle of a neighbour’s flat, knowing he was in hospital.
She returned later and broke in through the patio door and unlocked the front door from the inside.
She was then seen to go back and forth to steal various belongings, including watches, a tool box full of tools and other household items.
Edkins was in her wheelchair, but at one point got out and crawled into the flat.
The items were later returned but the patio door cost around £2,000 to repair.
Following her arrest, she admitted the burglary and said she was high on crack cocaine at the time.
Edkins, now of Cranmore Grove, Middleton, has 28 previous convictions for 65 offences, including multiple burglaries from the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Mitigating, Caitlin Smith said Edkins had a troubled upbringing, that both of her parents were drug addicts and her mother died from an overdose when Edkins was just 10.
Edkins began smoking cannabis at the age of 10 and first tried heroin aged 11.
Judge Penelope Belcher said that she was not subject to the “third-strike” burglary rule, meaning she would face a mandatory immediate jail sentence, largely because her earlier burglaries date back more than 30 years.
Edkins was handed a 20-month sentence, suspended for 24 months. She was also told to complete 15 rehabilitation days with probation.