Career criminal stole £4,000 of sentimental jewellery in break-in at Leeds cottage

A career criminal with an 'abhorrent' record for committing burglaries in Leeds has been jailed for four years for stealing more than £4,000 of sentimental jewellery in a break-in at a remote cottage.
Daniel Hanrahan.Daniel Hanrahan.
Daniel Hanrahan.

Daniel Hanrahan, 46, targeted the property near Morley when the owner had gone out for the day on May 3 this year.

She returned to find her dog in the garden and discovered rooms had been ransacked.

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Hanrahan had managed to gain access to the cottage through a stable door.

Items stolen included a mobile phone, two iPads, five watches, jewellery and cash.

Heather Gilmore, prosecuting, said the jewellery was of sentimental value to the owner and had not been recovered.

Hanrahan was arrested after his blood was recovered from a drawer.

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Hanrahan, of Cottingley Springs, Leeds, has 19 previous convictions for burglary.

He has a total of 44 criminal convictions dating back to 1985.

Hanrahan initially denied any involvement in the burglary after he was arrested and interviewed by police

He later pleaded guilty to burglary and was jailed for four years.

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Allan Armbrister, mitigating, said Hanrahan was given a five year prison sentence in 2013 for his last offence.

He had been released from custody on licence when he carried out the break-in.

Mr Armbrister said: “When he came out he tried to stick by those conditions of his licence.”

“But he went back to his old ways and he knows this is an aggravating feature.

“He realises that at his age he needs to mend his ways.

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Judge Robin Mairs said: “As with all burglaries, this has had a distressing and unsettling affect on (the victim).

“You have an absolutely abhorrent and appalling record for this kind of offending.

“It is obvious from the circumstances of this offence that you are a persistent, committed burglar.”

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