Shop burglar handed suspended sentence
A burglar has been given a suspended jail term for his part in a Christmas Day raid on a video game store.
Stephen Ward, 26, of no fixed abode, was found by a police officer at The Gaming Squad, The Arcade, Newark, with two bags full of video games.
At Nottingham Magistrates’ Court, Ward admitted entering the store on December 25 and taking items of an unknown value.
Shane Barthorpe, 30, of Tithe Barn Court, Newark, admitted his part in the burglary on December 27 at the same court and was jailed for six months.
The owner discovered his shop had been broken into via a Facebook message, prosecutor Mr Robert Carr said.
“A police officer was dispatched to the shop and arrived shortly before 3.20pm,” he said.
“The officer says when he got there he could see two bikes leant up against the wall, the window was broken, and he could hear voices coming from inside the shop.
“He went upstairs and found two men.”
Ward was arrested and told police that he had entered the shop because the window had already been smashed, Mr Carr said.
He said he had filled two bags with games with the intention of stealing them and selling them on.
All the games were recovered.
Mr Jameel Malik, defending, said Ward was cycling through The Arcade on his way to see family and friends.
“He was convinced to go into the shop and have a look round by Barthorpe,” he said.
“They went inside and started collecting games.”
'An opportunistic burglary'
Ward would not have gone into the store had Barthorpe not been there and he was embarrassed by what he had done, Mr Malik said.
“There is no evidence that it was Mr Barthorpe or Mr Ward who smashed the window,” he said.
“All we know is that they were there and had bags full of these games.”
District Judge Tim Spruce handed Ward a ten-week jail term, suspended for a year.
Mr Spruce said: “I accept that this was an opportunistic burglary and that perhaps you are not the ringleader here.
“You have got to go back some seven years to find a similar sort of offence and three years before that for when you were in trouble at all.
“That, along with your guilty plea, is why I will suspend your sentence.
“I don’t want to see you back here.”
Ward was ordered to pay £200 costs, which will be deducted from his benefits payments.
Police got lucky, says businessman
The Gaming Squad shop in The Arcade, Newark, was broken into between 11.45am and 12.58pm on Christmas Day.
The police were called at 1.24pm, but officers did not arrive at the scene until 3.18pm.
When they did, two suspects were at the scene and were arrested.
Business owner Mr Luke Mitchell said he understood the need for Nottinghamshire Police to prioritise calls, but questioned staffing levels.
He said officers had got lucky because suspects were there when they arrived, particularly as he had been told that forensics could not be done until January 4.
A spokesman for the force said: “This is an extraordinarily impactful crime, especially on small business owners and something that Nottinghamshire Police is committed to tackling.
“Our response this time was slower than usual as result of high demands on our service.
“We are supporting the small business affected as best we can to get them back up and running and bring any offenders to justice.”
The shop re-opened on Tuesday, and Mr Mitchell paid tribute to the people in the town who had helped him.
“I have been ultra-impressed by the community spirit in Newark,” he said.
“Other shop owners have dived in, people have helped me do a stock take and a young lad came in to help me test the consoles. It has been brilliant.
“The shop is still not fully stocked, but it’s stocked enough that we’ve been able to re-open.
“But security in The Arcade – including gates - is still needed.”
Traders in The Arcade have started a petition calling for security gates to be fitted that would prevent night-time access.
