Former army man 'over the moon' as brazen burglar gets four year sentence for stealing £5

Pickpocket and distraction thief Norbert Ciechowicz took just £5 from 88-year-old Dennis Birch after entering his home in July last year.

The proud but vulnerable Mr Birch was also targeted by a burglar in August of last year, and had several thousand pound stolen by bogus workmen a few years ago.

But he remains defiant - and he and his son, Paul Daley, hope two convictions within the space of two months will send a strong message to anyone thinking of targeting him again.

Speaking after Ciechowicz, 37, was sent down for almost four years for the July incident, Mr Daley said: "I am absolutely beaming."

The 46-year-old added: "I was shocked when I heard it was a £5 - his last fiver.

"Now he's got four years for stealing that fiver," Mr Birch added, noting the element of dark humour in the case. "Dad is over the moon," he added.

Mr Birch is originally from Kirkstall and later worked as a joiner and shopfitter at Burton's on Hudson Road after leaving the army.

He has lived in Harehills since the early seventies and been a member of Harehills Working Men's Club since he was 18 , but does not want to live in sheltered accommodation.

"He's a club man," Mr Daley said. "It's been his life. He's been on the committee, been president and treasurer."

Mr Birch didn't realise he was being burgled by Ciechowicz as he distracted him.

Mr Daley, a plumbing contractor, put cameras in the house several years ago, and has installed more high-tech cameras recently to boost security.

"When he watched the footage and saw the sleight of hand, I think that's what hurt him," Mr Daley said.

"He still thinks of himself as a tough army man who can look after himself, but he is vulnerable."

In October 2019, burglar Tomas Mizicar was jailed for three years after Leeds Crown Court heard he was caught on CCTV creeping around Mr Birch's front room as he slept in his wheelchair just after 6.30pm on August 27, 2019.

Mizicar, 24, took £25 from a wallet, the only cash in the house.

Mr Daley said his dad has expressed pity for the man, who had been given the opportunity to come to the UK and build a life for his wife and children, but instead threw it away.

Mr Birch would often keep his door open so he could see birds on the feeders in his garden - "one of his comforts", Mr Daley said.

Mr Daley, who lives in Thorpe, near Middleton, was also full of praise for West Yorkshire Police's handling of both cases.

Ciechowicz, who admitted burglary, theft, fraud and robbery, was only caught after a man who he stole £1,550 from on a street in Harehills in October last year later recognised him and called the police.

The officer who was sent out to arrest him had worked on the Mizicar case and recognised Ciechowicz as the culprit in the first burglary on Mr Birch.

"Everyone involved at West Yorkshire Police has been absolutely brilliant," Mr Daley said. "For something low impact in terms of money, it had a high impact on my dad."