Burglar jailed after girl hid under bed clutching teddy

A young girl clutched her teddy bear and hid beneath her bed in terror while her father fought off a burglar downstairs who falsely claimed to have a gun.

Stephen Jones, of no fixed address, has been jailed for 32 months after breaking into the Wrexham family home and assaulting Matt Phillips during a confrontation captured on mobile phone footage.

Caernarfon Crown Court heard how Mr Phillips was woken at 1.15am on December 27 last year when he discovered Jones inside his home wearing his coat and shining a torch in his face. The intruder threatened him, asking “Did he (Mr Phillips) know who he was messing with?” and falsely claimed to have a weapon.

Mobile phone footage filmed by Mr Phillips’ wife – who was simultaneously on the phone to police – shows her bare-chested husband confronting the burglar. The pair ended up in the garage where they fell onto a sofa during a struggle before Jones fled.

The incident left the couple’s daughter so frightened she later asked whether the man would return for their Christmas presents.

Jones’ crime spree also included breaking into St Christopher’s School, a special needs school in Wrexham, on December 10. He helped himself to food, stole a pupil’s iPad, damaged desks and left blood at the scene.

The following day, he broke into a woman’s car, leaving red blood spots inside and stealing diaries and aftershave worth £310.

Prosecutor Emmalyne Downing outlined the December offences to the court, while defence barrister Patrick Geddes said Jones had pleaded guilty and there had been little planning involved.

Her Honour Judge Nicola Jones sentenced Jones to 32 months for the house burglary, with concurrent sentences of 12 months for the school break-in and two months for assaulting Mr Phillips.