Builder took car and stole from shipping container

Monday 27 May 2019

A builder has been jailed after he identified himself as the driver of a car which didn't belong to him, which was seen on CCTV being used to steal items worth around £300.

Benjamin Gillespie, 28, was working on a car in early March, when another unidentified man was involved in the theft at the Guernsey Recycling yard.

The man, who was homeless at the time of the offence, was working on the car on 1 March and was seen driving around the Bridge by Guernsey Police officers who were in the area on another matter.

On 3 March he and another, using the car, trespassed onto the grounds of Guernsey Recycling. The court heard that either the man or both men broke the padlock on two of the containers before returning the car to its owner.

The following morning a Guernsey Recycling worker found the container had been broken into and called the police. They identified three items which had been taken; a Portable Appliance Tester, a jerry can containing petrol and a crash helmet, valued together at £310. 

Advocate Liam Roffey represented the man in court, and said in his defence that this is the first time he has admitted an offence of dishonesty. 

Judge Russell Finch sentenced the man to two months imprisonment for theft and burglary, "offending like this must be deterred," he said.