Silent Crime round-up: Shoplifter banned from stores; disabled woman woke up to thief towering over her; teen targeted on bus

The ‘Silent Crime’ campaign aims to highlight under-reported and unresolved low-level crimes which are blighting communities up and down the country. We want to hear from you about your experience, whether justice was served or not. To get in touch, click here.

Her are just some examples of the crimes impacted everyday lives across the UK.

A disabled pensioner woke up to find a burglar standing over her bedside table during a theft in West Bromwich. As reported by the Express & Star, Peter Hines, 65, had broken into the room of the woman, whom he lived alongside in shared accommodation and had known for 30 years, to steal money for Class A drugs.

The court heard that Hines knew about her disability and had thought of her as an “easy target”. Other residents of the shared accommodation came to the woman’s aid after she woke to find a 6ft 3in Hines towering over her bed.

The burglar pleaded guilty and has since been sentenced to two years and three months behind bars. Hines also apologised to his victim, telling the court that it was a “spur of the moment” crime.

In Wakefield, a prolific shoplifter has been handed a three-year Criminal Behaviour Order which prohibits him from entering stores such as Tesco Express, Best One and Premier Post Office for three-years. Christopher Paul Swift, 36, was also handed a 16-week suspended sentence for his crimes.

Inspector Glen Costello said: “Swift has been responsible for a series of burglaries and shoplifting offences at convenience stores in the Castleford area, targeting some of the stores on multiple occasions. He was arrested last week and swiftly charged and put before the courts where he received a suspended custodial sentence. We have worked with Wakefield Council in obtaining this Criminal Behaviour Order and it means that if he commits any further offences or breaches the terms of this order then he can be sent to prison.

A teenager was followed off of a bus in Telford and hit in the face twice by a couple who gave him a black eye. The Shropshire Star reports that the couple had been harassing two women on the bus, which had been travelling through Telford last December, and when the women left the bus, they began to target the teenage boy.

They accused the young boy of taking photographs of them and their children, which he denied. The woman in the couple then unsuccessfully attempted to grab the phone from the boy’s hand, before he phoned a friend and asked her to meet him when he got off the bus.

The teenager, who suffered a black eye and swollen cheek in the attack, told the court: "I got off the bus and I could see them following me. The couple were shouting towards me, they were on the other side of the road. They crossed the road... the man hit me in the face twice.

"I remember my friend trying to kick him off. I had blood coming from my nose as a result of [his] violent actions."

Kyle Hay was handed a 12-month community order after attacking the boy. He was also instructed to pay a £120 fine and £200 in victim compensation, as well as being instructed to attend rehabilitation activity days.

Two teenagers have been arrested after riding e-scooters in an “anti-social manner”, according to Edinburgh Evening News. The newspaper reports that cops on patrol at Prestonpans High Street had identified the teenagers after spotting the irresponsible driving.

The teenagers, both aged 15, were charged with road traffic offences. Their e-scooters were also seized following the incident.

A spokesperson for Police Scotland said: “The youths were charges with various Road Traffic Offences and are being reported for this. Parents are reminded of the legal requirements regarding the use of e-scooters.”

A man waved an axe at a woman from his window after threatening to cut his neighbour’s head off, a court has heard in South Tyneside. Raymond Peters, 60, began swinging the blade in the direction of the woman, who was in the garden outside, after a bed he had attempted to build while drunk had collapsed.

On the same day, he also threatened the same woman in a Facebook message to a mutual friend. In the bizarre message, he wrote: ‘If I get cancer, I’ll go to her address and chop her f-cking head off’.

The court heard that he had underlying animosity towards the woman after lending her money previously, but later finding out he was not the only person to do so.

Peters pleaded guilty to making threats with an offensive weapon and sending an obscene or menacing message. He was handed a 15-month community order.

In Leeds, a ‘professional phone thief’ was caught after being identified on CCTV swiping a device from the city centre. Musa Conteh, who has been convicted of similar offences, was part of a gang that cornered a drinker on Call Lane and stole his phone after telling him that he had a knife.

As reported by Yorkshire Evening Post, Conteh, 25, of Crofton Road, Plaistow, London, was sentenced to 54 months behind bars, with the judge telling the thief that he “simply won’t learn his lesson”. Judge Ray Singh told Conteh: “You have significant and relevant offences. These are very serious offences. There was a threat of violence, a threat to stab him.

“Your previous convictions are all of a similar nature. You simply won’t learn you lesson. There’s really no mitigation available to you.”