A TEENAGE burglar has been jailed after he was spotted by neighbours trying to break into a garage at a secluded house in Worcester.

Darren Sutton, of Lilac Close, Worcester, was with two others when he was seen by neighbours jumping over a fence near to the door of the garage. Police were called and all three were arrested nearby, Worcester Crown Court was told.

Jackie Rogers, prosecuting, said the four-bedroomed house in Threshfield Drive was in a secluded location and had a track running nearby along the old Tolladine golf course.

Because of its location, it had been targeted by burglars on previous occasions, the last time as recently as October last year.

The occupier did not know there had been another attempt until told by the police but she said her dogs had started barking to be let out at around the time Sutton had jumped over the six-foot high fence at about 8.40am on January 2 this year.

Neighbours saw the 19-year-old looking over the fence a number of times as if he was ‘casing’ the property before jumping over. He disappeared from sight and a few minutes later, he jumped back again.

He told police he had gone to look for a ball that had been kicked over the fence earlier in the week. He was also found in possession of a screwdriver which he said he was taking back to the person he had borrowed it from. The court was told that the 19-year-old had 31 convictions, mostly for theft, and had been released from custody in September last year.

Gary Harper, defending, said Sutton had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and Asperger’s syndrome, a condition which meant he did not see the consequences of his actions. He said Sutton had been in care for most of his life.

Judge Michael Cullum said Sutton and the other two, who are due to be sentenced later, were clearly looking for somewhere suitable to burgle. He believed they were all in it together and Sutton was not the ringleader but he had a “dreadful” list of convictions.

He warned Sutton, who had been involved in house burglaries before, that he was very close to getting “years and years” in custody.

He gave him an eight months sentence and said he should use the time to reflect on what he was doing.

“You will soon end up in adult prisons and it will be a real waste of your life,” he said.