Jailed for burgling Cheshire homes

Three men have been jailed after admitting travelling into Cheshire to burgle homes.

Cristian Ion, of Roundthorn Road, Oldham, and fellow Romanian nationals Mard Mitrache and Danut Ciocanaru, both aged 27 and of no fixed address, pleaded guilty of two counts of burglary and theft.

Ion, 23, also admitted a charge of driving without insurance.

The trio were sentenced at Chester Crown Court on Friday 21 December. Ion and Mitrache were both jailed for 16 months and Ciocanaru was given a 12-month prison sentence. On completion of their sentences they will all be extradited to Romania.

The case against the men began when the Ford Fiesta they were travelling in collided with a bush on Hasty Lane in Hale Barns, Altrincham, as it attempted to evade police shortly after 1pm on Wednesday 21 November.

Officers blocked the car in against the bush and swiftly arrested Mitrache and Ciocanaru. but Ion, who was driving the Fiesta, managed to get out of the vehicle and attempted to flee on foot. After climbing over a fence and jumping through a bush, he was caught and arrested by an officer who had given chase.

Upon searching the Fiesta, officers found a number of items that had been stolen from houses in Helsby and Millington earlier that day. The men had burgled a house at The Rock in Helsby, smashing a window to gain entry and stealing a quantity of jewellery and a Samsung tablet. They had also smashed a window to burgle an address on Reddy Lane in Millington, where they stole jewellery and cash.

Detective Constable Roger Smith said: “Burglary is a serious offence in which people are targeted in their own home – the place that they should be able to feel most safe. Thankfully the victims in Helsby and Millington were not at home when their properties were burgled, but having your home broken into and your possessions stolen is a deeply upsetting experience.”

“The offenders in this case are international criminals who came to this country for the purpose of committing crime. We caught them red-handed with the items that they stole from the houses in Helsby and Millington and I am pleased that they have all been handed custodial sentences and can no longer target Cheshire homes.”

“I hope that the sentences they have been handed will deter others from committing similar crimes and I would like to thank all the officers who have been involved in the case for their hard work in securing these convictions.”