New Year's Eve Leeds house burglar caught after mobile phone left at scene

A Leeds house burglar who struck when his victim was out at a New Year's Eve party was traced after DNA was found on a mobile phone left at the scene.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Sheldon Bradley was part of a gang that burgled the house in Gipton, Leeds Crown Court heard.

The victim returned home in the early hours on New Year's Day 2019 to find his TV was missing and his kitchen patio door open.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He believed he had disturbed the burglars and saw his TV and a backpack on the patio outside.

Sheldon BradleySheldon Bradley
Sheldon Bradley

The man found four laptops and a camera in the backpack.

He also found a Samsung mobile phone, which was not his, in the backpack.

The phone was examined by police and traces of Bradley''s DNA was found on it.

Bradley, age 23 of North Farm Road, Gipton, admitted burglary.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Prosecutor, Jessica Mae Randell said the burglary victim left his house at around 7pm on December 31 2018 to go to a New Year's Eve party.

He returned at around 3am on New Year's Day to discover his home had been raided.

Rooms had been searched and 300 euros and £50 cash had been stolen from a bedroom.

Miss Randell said Bradley told police he owed a drug debt to other members of the burglary gang and was under pressure to commit the offence.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Bradley told police was acting as a lookout before being told to climb in to the house through a kitchen window and open the door.

Bradley has five previous convictions for nine offences, including two burglaries.

Jane Edwards, mitigating, said Bradley started using cocaine and cannabis in 2017 and ended up with a drug debt.

Miss Edwards said: "They found a house to burgle and he was told to get on with it. He regrets the offence of that night."

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Jailing Bradley for 18 months, Recorder David Kelly told him: "The occupier returned whilst the burglary was in progress "

Recorder Kelly added: "It is accepted by the crown that you were under considerable pressure to commit the offence."