Two men who raided a convenience store in Bath and stole items worth nearly £7,000 appeared separately before city magistrates to admit their guilt.
The One Stop store in The Hollow
The first to appear in connection with the burglary at the One Stop store in The Hollow in Southdown was Bristol man Nicholas Hatherall.
He was brought in custody to the court on Monday 29th September.
The 43-year-old, of Lynton Road in Bedminster, admitted stealing cigarettes, tobacco and spirits to the value of £6,815.69.
Prosecutor Kevin Withey said that police had received a 999 call on 26th August saying the alarm at the shop at The Hollow had been activated. Damage caused to the shop was between £2,500 and £3,000. The intruders had left by the time police arrived.
Police identified Hatherall from CCTV, and he was arrested on Sunday 28th September. At his home, clothing was found that matched what he was wearing in the shop. None of the stolen items were discovered.
The court heard a victim statement from a member of the store who said the burglary had meant the store had to shut for a day to clear up the mess and secure the premises, which had impacted the community.
Hatherall has a “very long list” of previous convictions and was on recall to prison, the court heard.
His defence solicitor said Hatherall had been very proud to recently secure a job as a bin man and is “full of grief and anger at himself” for relapsing into his drug habit and wants to get clean.
The magistrates said they did not have sentencing powers to deal with Hatherall, so they referred the case to Bristol Crown Court. He was remanded in custody to appear there on 28th October.
At his court appearance, Hatherall also admitted a charge of driving while disqualified on 24th June at Bonnington Walk in Lockleaze in Bristol.
The court heard he had several previous convictions for driving while disqualified which have been running concurrently. They banned him from driving for 47 months and 14 days. He also received a 12-week jail sentence and was ordered to pay prosecution costs of £85 and a surcharge of £154.
On Wednesday 1st October the second person wanted in connection with the burglary at the One Stop shop in Southdown, 48-year-old Lee Morgan, was brought in custody to Bath Magistrates’ Court after being identified by CCTV.
The court heard that Morgan, of no fixed address, was awaiting sentence for two other burglaries – one at the Costcutter shop on Filton Avenue in Bristol on 25th July and another on 21st August at a construction site at Romney Avenue in Lockleaze, Bristol.
At his appearance, he also admitted a failure to surrender to bail and being in breach of a curfew.
Morgan, who the court heard has previous convictions for 37 offences, was remanded in custody until 29th October when he will be sentenced at Bristol Crown Court.
