A drug-addicted jewel thief who stole up to £500,000 in watches, necklaces and jewellery, was snared by cops after he bumped into officers lying in wait for him in bushes.
The capture was revealed after Dave Sterling, 45, was jailed by a judge at Guildford Crown Court yesterday to seven years in prison.
Sterling roamed the fairways of Coombe Hill Golf Club at night sneaking into the back gardens of million pound mansions on Kingston Hill while their owners were home.
Wearing a balaclava he leapt to the first floor and stole between £450,000 and £500,000 of rings, necklaces and watches between January and May last year.
The judge noted the anxiety caused to his victims, two of whom were in their 80s, as he sentenced him.
Police hid in bushes on a golf course with night vision goggles and a helicopter hovering over Richmond Park as they set a trap for the professional jewel thief.
They guessed that the night-time raider was using the exclusive course between 9pm and 1am to access the mansions and settled down in the cold for a week of surveillance.
Detective Sergeant Tony Skinner, who was at court to see the jewel thief sentenced, said: “It was good old fashioned policing but it worked. All we had were night vision goggles and we were just there in the bushes silently waiting.
“It was pitch black and you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face.”
The five police officers waited unsuccessfully for one night and on evening two were contemplating the prospect of five nights with no success, when they spotted a balaclava clad figure strolling across the greens and knew they had their man.
It was so dark, Sterling bumped into the officers in the bush on the way back from his botched break-in attempt.
DS Skinner said: “He literally walked straight into them. They never even saw him coming.
“The helicopter was over in about 20 or 30 seconds. The rest is history.”
A mobile phone call to the helicopter pilot brought it swooping in with a light, which illuminated the crowbar and latex gloves Sterling desperately tried to jettison.
A £100,000 pear-shaped diamond ring stolen from a house in Warren Road, on private estate Kingston Hill, has never been recovered.
Police believe a woman may be wearing it completely oblivious to its value.
At his trial at Kingston Crown Court in February, Sterling had claimed he was trying to find three bags on the night of his arrest left in bushes by a friend known only as as Danny.
But the jury convicted him on six counts of burglary and six counts of converting criminal property.
During his sentencing on Thursday, March 31 at Guildford Crown Court, Sterling spoke only to confirm his name.
Prosecuting Neil Griffin said the five houses were targeted because they were wealthy but the occupants had been left anxious by the raids.
He said: “It would have been obvious to him, if not before, but after the first time, that it would be rich pickings.”
Judge Advocate Michael Hunter said: “I would be failing in my duty to the public if I didn’t pass a significant sentence.
“This was a series of pre-meditated night time night-time burglaries carried out and executed over a period of time.
“Because it was a series of burglaries you caused considerable distress to a large number of people. Two of your victims were elderly people in their 80s who must have been particularly distressed b this but I do take into account the fact you have no intention of upsetting elderly people.
“We don’t know how much you took but in fairness to you it must have been at least £450,000. It was probably a great deal more than that. That is a very substantial amount.
“The least sentence which I can pass is one of seven years imprisonment on each count to run concurrently to make a total of seven years.” The time he has spent on remand since his arrest last May will be taken into account.
Drug-addicted thief was living in ‘pitiful condition’ The court heard from his defence counsel that, despite his professional approach to the burglaries, he was living a “chaotic lifestyle”.
His house in Mitcham was “in a pitiful state”, with dripping water and loose floorboards and had been used by Sterling and his friends to take crack cocaine and heroin.
His counsel said even though he stole between £450,000 and £500,000 he had not profited to the same degree when he pawned the items on.
Evidence showed he accepted just £420 from a pawnbrokers for a £3,000 diamond and gold necklace he had stolen.
Sterling had stayed out of trouble by travelling to Japan after 12 convictions for 17 time offences, including jail time for burglaries when he was 18 and 20, the court was told.
Defending Patricia Lloyd claimed he had was “susceptible to exploitation” as he suffered from depression, was a drug addict, and perhaps a gambling addiction.
She said: “A Mr Big somewhere has got rich but not Mr Sterling.”
But Detective Sergeant Tony Skinner said that Sterling was a dangerous offender, despite his attempt to persuade the jury he was innocent.
He said: “It was really a sign of a guy with no alibi. He was unable to provide names and addresses to people who supposedly took him up to the course.
“He possesses a significant risk to the public. He was violent on arrest and I have no doubt had anyone disturbed him and tried to restrain him he would have been extremely violent to them.”
Original story from April 1, 2011 at surreycomet.co.uk
David Lindsell 