Notts man who burgled the same place twice faces “considerable” sentence

Stuart Short broke into a Portacabin at the site of an EE communications mast on Woodthorpe Road, Mapperley, where he stole batteries and damaged a CCTV camera, on June 7, 2018, said prosecutor Joey Kwong.

And while he was awaiting trial he broke into the same location on March 1, and again on March 14, of this year.

Mr Kwong said Short was oringally arrested in August 2018, but admin errors caused delays.

Short, 45, of Lodge Road, Newthorpe, pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary at Nottingham Crown Court, on Thursday, after previously admitting the burglary and criminal damage from 2018.

Claire Moran, mitigating, said she accepted he has a lengthy record, but added that he remained clean of drugs and offence free for five years.

"His methadone script was stopped for four months and he relapsed," she said. "He is now willing to engage in drug treatment and he has proved that it has been successful in the past."

Judge Timothy Spencer QC adjourned the case until May 21 for a pre-sentence report, but he warned Short "not to take any comfort" as he was in "a very serious position."

"You're looking at being locked up for a considerable period of time," he said. “But I will hear what is said and I will keep an open mind."

Short, currently in HMP Nottingham, will stay in custody until he is sentenced.