20-year-old with 70 offences is jailed again for burglary

The woman was sleeping downstairs in her Padgate home due to health issues when Barclay Redford broke in and stole her bank cards and cash.

Days before, Redford, who has 70 offences on his criminal record, stole a car and crashed it into the back of another vehicle containing a woman and her child.

Redford appeared before Liverpool Crown Court today, Tuesday, where he was jailed for a horrific spree of offending.

At an earlier hearing, he pleaded guilty to a number of offences including burglary, dangerous driving, theft, fraud, and car theft.

Prosecuting, Lee Bonner said the first offence committed by Redford, of Banks Crescent, Latchford, was vehicle interference on February 25 of this year.

Mr Bonner said that Redford and another male were picked up on CCTV near Sankey Street in the town centre trying to get into the car of a Deliveroo driver who had just passed them on foot.

The next offences happened in March of this year and consisted of three separate incidents of theft at the Co-op on Knutsford Road.

On all occasions, Redford loaded up carrier bags and baskets and ran out of the store without paying for more than £300 of goods.

Also in March, Redford stole a bank card from a car on Lime Avenue in Padgate and spent £35 at a nearby Esso Garage.

The court heard that on the same day, he stole a car from outside someone’s home and crashed it into the back of a vehicle on Padgate Lane in which a mum and her teenage daughter were in.

Redford caused them to propel into a number of other cars, and in total, four vehicles were damaged.

He then fled the scene before he then abandoned the stolen car and fled on foot.

A few days later, also in March, Redford burgled a house on Station Road North in Padgate in the early hours of the morning.

“The victim was a woman who had been diagnosed with terminal cancer,” said Mr Bonner.

“She was sleeping on the couch in the conservatory due to health issues and her husband was asleep upstairs.

“She was woken up and saw a man standing at the edge of the sofa with a torch in his hand.

“He was wandering around the house.”

The woman assumed it was her husband but when she found out it wasn’t him, she assumed it must have been a dream.

It was only later on in the morning when her library pocketbook was handed in that she realised her cash and bank cards had been stolen.

Redford used these to buy nearly £100 worth of goods in Tesco on Winwick Road.

Mr Bonner said how the defendant has 30 convictions for 70 offences.

Defending, Jim Smith said: “The defendant is aware that anything I do say on his behalf may have a limited impact because these offences speak for themselves.

“He is very sorry for the harm he has caused to all of his victims.”

Mr Smith said how his client committed the offences to fund his drug addiction and that he suffers from anxiety and depression and has ADHD.

Referencing the burglary, Judge Stuart Driver said: “The occupants were in the premises.

“There is a really bad aggravating feature which is when you entered the house, sleeping on the sofa downstairs was a very vulnerable victim who was receiving treatment for cancer.

“She woke to see someone stood at the foot of the couch.”

Talking about the dangerous driving, Judge Driver added: “This was another bad incident.

“You were in a stolen car and intoxicated with drugs.

“You caused a collision which involved four vehicles, there was a child in the car which you hit and this has had a substantial impact.”

Before passing sentence, the judge said: “These cases have been made even worse by your terrible criminal record.

“At the age of just 20, there are over 70 offences on your record.”

Redford received 40 months in prison.