Fraudster in Cex crime after £15,000 worth of watches stolen from Wakefield company's van
A fraudster tried to sell on watches at a pawn shop just hours after they were stolen from a van outside a city-centre business.
The expensive wrist pieces, valued at around £15,000, had been taken from the vehicle at J Cycle’s in Wakefield, along with expensive bike pumps.
Vaughan Myatt was later caught on camera trying to sell some of the watches at Cex in Wakefield city centre, which deals in buying and selling goods.
The 39-year-old was also caught on camera repeatedly using a bank card stolen in a burglary hours prior.
He later admitted two counts of handling stolen goods, four counts of fraud and making threats to an officer after he was arrested. He appeared at Leeds Crown Court over a video link from HMP Leeds, where he was being held on remand.
The court heard that that the cycle business on Kirkgate Commercial Centre was hit by a thief on May 21.
Myatt was then seen in Cex attempting to offload two of the watches for a few hundreds pounds. He then went to the nearby Cash Convertors pawn shop to sell the bike pumps.
On June 15, banks cards were taken in a house burglary and within hours they were being used at convenience stores in the early hours. Almost £164 was spent in four shops on cigarettes and other items.
CCTV obtained by police quickly ascertained it was Myatt, prosecutor Zanisha Herbert told the court.
He was arrested and remained silent throughout his police interview, but he did tell an officer at the custody suite that he was “going to burn his house down” because it was that officer who “always got him”.
Myatt, of Milnthorpe Lane, Wakefield, has 28 previous convictions for 54 offences, including theft and three counts of fraud from last year and four for theft and going quipped from earlier this year, when he he was given a 31-week jail sentence, suspended for 12 months.
His latest offending put him in breach of the suspended sentence.
Mitigating, John Bottomley said Myatt’s alcohol and drug misuse had been well documented.
He said that the father-of-three was now addressing those issues while in prison. He also said he had a history of depression and self harm.
Judge Simon Batiste said Myatt had so many breaches on his record that immediate custody was the only option.
He activated six months of his suspended sentence, and gave him another five months’ jail, making a total of 11 months.