Video: Eight Doncaster burglars jailed in police crime clampdown
They have been put behind bars for a total of 20 years.
Eight Doncaster burglars whose crimes were investigated by detectives from South Yorkshire Police’s dedicated Operation Castle team have been jailed for a combined total of over 20 years in August.
A father and son duo and a burglar who assaulted an officers as she bravely detained him were among the eight locked up this month, with over 70 years of prison sentences handed out this year.
This detective-led approach has seen investigators look into patterns of offending, becoming aware of the identities of serial residential burglars within the city.
That knowledge came to the fore when identifying Lee and Ben MacManus who broke into a property in the middle of the night before stealing the victim's car as part of a '2-in-1 burglary'.
After conducting CCTV trawls of the local area, two suspects dressed in dark clothing were captured in the area around the time of the break-in.
A detective from the Op Castle team was able to identify them as the MacManuses and the pair were arrested.
A subsequent search of the property recovered several items of clothing which matched what they were wearing on CCTV and after being charged with burglary and theft, the pair were jailed after admitting both offences.
Ben, 20, and his dad, Lee, 48, both of no fixed abode, were sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court last Wednesday (19 August), with Ben given a three-year sentence in a young offenders' institution and Lee jailed for three years and four months.
Michael Scott, of Maple Road, was another burglar who has been jailed following an investigation by Op Castle, with the 47-year-old jailed for two years and five months after breaking into a home in Mexborough.
Andrew Stewart was caught red-handed after forensics teams analysed the stone he used to smash a window during a burglary at a property in Bessacarr.
It proved a DNA match to Stewart, with another match confirmed following a fingerprint swab of a cat flap from the scene of another burglary.
Stewart, 42, of no fixed abode, was jailed for two years and five months at Sheffield Crown Court on Tuesday (25 August) after pleading guilty to two burglaries.
Daniel Finigan broke into a house in Bentley, stealing car keys, cash and other expensive items before trying to flee the scene following officers' prompt arrival at the scene.
As officers surveyed the property, Finigan jumped out of a window, but was pursued by a response officer who managed to detain him despite his violent attempts to escape.
She managed to keep hold of him until colleagues came to assist, with her actions caught on body-worn video.
Finigan, 39, of no fixed abode, was jailed for two years and five months during a sentencing hearing at Sheffield Crown Court on Tuesday (25 August) after admitting two counts of burglary and assault by beating of an emergency worker.
Mackenzie-dean Wilson, 24, of Davis Road, Instoneville, was the final Op Castle detainee to be sentenced in August.
Fingerprints proved to be Wilson's downfall after swabs were lifted from a window frame, with CCTV corroborating his movements around the time of the offence.
The vehicle he stole was recovered and returned to his owner, with Wilson given a two-year prison sentence for burglary and theft of a motor vehicle at Sheffield Crown Court on Thursday (27 August).
Ashley Marlborough, 42, of Hirst Gate, who is accused of burgling a property in Mexborough, appeared before Sheffield Crown Court on Wednesday (26 August) charged with this offence.
He has been remanded in custody ahead of another hearing at the same court next Friday (4 September).
The intensified efforts of Op Castle has resulted in rates of residential burglary in Doncaster recently falling to their lowest levels in five years.
A spokesperson said: “As well as investigating a series of offences across the city, the team work alongside neighbourhood policing teams to carry out intelligence-led patrols in hotspot areas as well as our Integrated Offender Management team who monitor convicted burglars who have just been released from prison and may be re-offending.
“In total, eight burglars in Doncaster were jailed in August for a combined total of over 25 years following investigations by Op Castle, with Russell Riley and Peter Coulthread sent to prison earlier this month.”
Detective Sergeant Milner, who heads up the Op Castle team, explained more about the work his team are doing to secure justice for victims of residential burglaries in Doncaster:
"August has been a really pivotal month in securing justice for victims of residential burglary in Doncaster.
“That mission drives our work and after working with countless victims of this type of crime, we know just how devastating and impactful it is to have your home broken into.
"The team's knowledge of the cohort of people committing these offences and the tactics they are using continues to grow day by day and it's leading to dangerous offenders being brought before the courts and sent to prison.
"I want to thank all victims of these offences for their cooperation and support with our investigations. Without this and without these reports to police, we wouldn't be able to bring offenders to justice.
"Anyone who decides to break into someone's home should be in no doubt that we will find you, we will gather the evidence needed to put you before the courts and we will keep working to make our communities safer."
How to report residential burglaries
If you have been a victim of residential burglary, please know that police here to support you and investigate on your behalf in order to bring offenders to justice.
You should report it to police as soon as possible.
If a burglary is happening, always ring 999 as a crime is in progress.