Third strike burglar who raided homes across Cheshire jailed

Neil Farthing journeyed down to Cheshire from Liverpool in the summer with his sights set on stealing luxury cars, namely Audis and Jaguars, off the drives of innocent homeowners.

The dad-of-two appeared before Chester Crown Court today, Friday, having pleaded guilty to charges including four counts of attempted burglary, three counts of burglary, and two counts of driving without insurance and driving while disqualified.

Prosecuting the case, Myles Wilson said that in the early hours of Tuesday, July 2, Farthing targeted three properties in Warrington.

Occupants at addresses in Atlanta Gardens, Elmsett Close, and Brightwell Close, all reported the locks on their doors had been tampered with, although the offender had not managed to gain access to the properties.

Mr Wilson explained that the defendant, along with an accomplice and both wearing face coverings, tried to make entry into the first address, where the terrified homeowner was disturbed by the noises being made in an attempt to break the locks of his front door.

He noted that Farthing had targeted the home due to the Audi and Jaguar parked on the drive.

Similarly the offender and another man tried to break the locks on the second home, which had an expensive Audi model parked on the drive.

The third home targeted in Warrington had both an Audi and BMW on the drive and the occupant of the house was woken by the sound of 'banging noises'. 

And while the locks of the doors were broken all three burglaries that night led to 'failed attempts'.

The hearing was heard at Chester Crown Court (Image: Supplied) Continuing his spree of break-ins into homes, many described as semi-detached and terrace houses on quiet streets, Farthing turned his attention to Northwich on Wednesday, August 14, and targeted two different properties, again during the early hours of the morning.

A resident in Priory Avenue, Davenham, reported someone had broken into their address by breaking the locks on the conservatory door, however they did not break through the internal door, preventing them from accessing the rest of the address.

The resident and his partner and child slept while the offence was being carried out, waking the next day to see a broken lock. But Farthing had failed to conceal footwear marks which Cheshire Police discovered and matched to his own, along with his cell phone data which was logged in the area at the time of the break in.

During the same morning, a court heard how the defendant targeted an address in Headworth Close where he broke into the property and took the keys to an Audi, worth £37,000 which was parked on the driveway.

He subsequently stole the vehicle and was therefore driving without insurance and while disqualified. The car was never recovered.

Just a few days later, during the early hours of Monday, August 19, Farthing targeted two more properties in Chester.

A resident in Newhall Road was disturbed by noises in the address, the prosecutor told.

They noticed a figure through the window and Farthing fled the scene. They reported the kitchen window had been tampered with and was damaged.

Meanwhile occupants at an address on Ormonde Road woke to find their doorbell camera had activated while they were sleeping and showed a man trying to get into the property.

The defendant had gained access by forcing the lock to the patio doors. Once inside, he stole sunglasses, an expensive watch, a wallet containing cash – birthday money belonging to an eight-year-old child who lived at the family home - and the keys to an Audi which was parked on the driveway.

The vehicle itself had also been stolen but was later recovered from the Golbourne area of Manchester and found in a damaged condition.

Farthing drove once again while disqualified when he took the car from the property.

He was arrested on Thursday, August 22 following a joint investigation between officers from Chester Proactive Team and Merseyside Police’s Fugitive Team.

CCTV footage recovered from some of the properties identified him as the perpetrator. 

Along with footwear prints and cell phone activity detected at the scene of the homes while the burglaries were taking place.

He was subsequently charged with the offences and had no choice but to plead guilty after being presented with the evidence identified by officers.

Mr Wilson highlighted the defendants extensive criminal record which included previous offences of burglary in which he had served time in prison for.

Defending, Peter Barnett said his client has ‘realised he has got to change his ways’.

“He had a drug debt; he was expected to pay off the debt and the only way to do that was to go back to his old ways.

“He has got to change.”

Neil Farthing (Image: Supplied) Before sentencing, Honour Judge Michael Leeming read out some of the victim impact statements that had been provided to the court.

He recalled one emotional letter from the occupant of the Atlanta Gardens address who stated that the incident had had a 'profound impact' on him and his family.

"When I heard the sound of a burglar down stairs I was immediately filled with terror. It may only have lasted a few minutes but it felt like a lifetime of stress."

Meanwhile another victim based at a property on Brightwell Close said since the break-in her eight-year-old son will not go upstairs on his own and feels unsafe in their home.

And another homeowner who was targeted by Farthing spoke of his shock that the defendant had walked through his garden which was filled with children's toys and, knowing there was a child inside, still decided to attempt to burgle the house.

"We thought locked inside our home was the safest place, but the burglar has taken this away from us," he said. "We are unable to relax properly at night. My wife has been unable to work since the break in as it has triggered her PTSD.

He added: "I worked several years to buy my dream car, an Audi A6, to now have fear that my car is making us a target."

Lastly, another victim, whose car and other personal belongings were taken by Farthing on the night he targeted their home, disclosed how not just the car but extremely 'personal belongings' were stolen from the home including his children's blankets they had had since birth.

Concluding, Judge Leeming said: "You are sentenced as a three strikes offender. 

"People are entitled to go to sleep at night in their own homes and feeling safe and secure, without fear of their property being stolen and their children in fear."

The defendant, of Pennard Avenue, Huyton, was handed a immediate sentence of six years and four months as well as being banned from driving for 50 months.

Police constable James Wright, of Chester Proactive Team, commented on the sentencing, stating: “Farthing is a prolific burglar and has a number of previous convictions for similar offences.

“He travelled into Cheshire from Merseyside to commit this series of burglaries. Thankfully he did not manage to gain access to all of the properties he targeted, but this does not take away from the distress caused to residents.

“This case has been a real team effort, with officers from different areas and different departments pulling together to hold this criminal to justice.

“Everyone deserves to feel safe in their home and Farthing completely disregarded this, targeting people’s homes while they were sleeping. I hope the sentence handed to Farthing will provide some reassurance to the community of how seriously we take offences of this nature.”