Two men have been jailed after breaking into the home of a 79-year-old partially deaf and blind woman.
Dean Nicholls, 34, of South Street, Bargoed, and Daniel Hughes, 25, of High Street, Fleur-de-Lis were each sentenced to three years at Cardiff Crown Court following the Blackwood burglary on Friday April 26 this year.
Nicholls and Hughes admitted the 3.45am burglary of 79-year-old Violet Raybone’s home as she slept upstairs. The woman has lived at her family home since she was two-years-old.
The pair, who smashed their way into the home through a conservatory with a hammer, stole a number of items from the house, including a television, money, jewellery, personal items, electrical equipment, bottles of alcohol and even the food from Mrs Raybone’s cupboards and freezer.
Before leaving they called a taxi from the elderly lady’s house phone and then ripped out the phone line.
The two men, who said they committed the burglary to fund their heroin addictions, were arrested later that day and were found to be in possession of a number of the items that they had stolen. Some were returned to Mrs Raybone but others had already been sold – including family heirlooms.
Nicholls also received a six month sentence for stealing meat worth £23.98 from the One Stop Shop in Blackwood. This sentence will run concurrently.
The officer in charge of the investigation, DC Jamie Cooper, said: “Both Hughes and Nicholls committed a senseless and callous act to fund their drug habits, showing complete disregard for the impact of their actions on the elderly and vulnerable resident.”
The pair were sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court on May 31, 2013.