Filey man jailed for over two years for burgling and stealing from ex's home
A serial offender has been jailed for burgling his former girlfriend’s home where he stole her bank card and over £200 cash.
Owen Hill, 32, from Filey, began his crime spree by punching the victim’s Ring Doorbell on July 10.
A week later, he turned up uninvited on three separate occasions in one day, York Crown Court heard.
“On the third occasion, he appeared to be intoxicated,” said prosecutor Oliver Connor.
Hill told the named victim, from Scarborough, that he suspected she had been using a dating app and took her phone.
One of the victim’s family members asked him to return the phone, which he did – but without the bank card which was attached to the back of the handset. He also stole £60 from her.
Hill, who worked at a chip shop in Filey, used the victim’s bank card to pay for £27 of goods at the BP garage on Seamer Road.
He then returned to her home in Cambridge Street where she was watching him on a security-camera feed on her mobile phone as he smashed a window at the back of the property and climbed inside.
He then made his way upstairs towards the victim who was in her bedroom and threw a cigarette on the floor, which she stubbed out.
As he came up the stairs, the victim said she would ring the police, whereupon Hill grabbed her by the wrist and arm.
“He was grabbing at her phone to try to remove it from her hand,” said Mr Connor.
“She ran from the house into the street.”
Hill ran off but when she went back inside, she realised he had stolen £215 from her purse.
He was subsequently arrested and charged with burglary, theft, criminal damage and fraudulent use of the victim’s bank card.
Hill, of Murray Street, admitted all offences and appeared for sentence today after being remanded in custody.
The prosecution outlined Hill’s prolific criminal record which comprised 94 previous offences including burglaries, theft and other acquisitive crime.
Defence barrister Jordan Millican said the father-of-one was an otherwise hard worker who had owned up to the offences at the first opportunity.
Recorder Mr D Kelly said that Hill’s offences had “undoubtedly had an adverse impact” on the victim.
He said that it had to be an immediate prison sentence because Hill was “not suitable” for rehabilitation due to his “poor response” to community disposals in the past and his “frequent relapses into substance misuse”.
As a “third-strike burglar”, Hill was also liable to a minimum 29-month jail sentence with credit for his guilty pleas.
Hill was jailed for two years and five months for the burglary and was handed concurrent prison sentences for the other offences. He will serve half of the 29-month sentence behind bars before being released on prison licence.
Mr Kelly also imposed a five-year restraining order banning Hill from contacting the victim and going to her home.