'His body craves drugs': Prolific thief who 'needs to be off the streets' gets long jail sentence

Howes, who is aged 26, from Hollybush Road, in Woodside, Telford, was sentenced at Telford Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to 23 offences at Telford Magistrates Court on Tuesday.

They included assaults, carrying a bladed article, and driving off in a £17,000 Audi after burgling the keys from behind the counter at a Premier Inn in Telford on May 29 this year. The owner had to pay for a hire car and get the vehicle's locks changed, the court was told.

Howes also tried to use stolen bank cards to withdraw cash or pay for items four times, twice on May 23 and twice on June 3, this year.

Howes also stole speakers from Halfords, a Calvin Klein gift set from Boots, trainers from Sports Direct, items worth £31.15 from Asda at Malinsgate, Telford, and items from the BP Garage at Hadley Park.

He also struck at Pretty Unusual Gifts, taking ornaments; and One Stop shops, the Wine Cellar and a Co-op; assaulted a man, and took a silver Mercedes without consent.

This all happened after he received a suspended jail sentence earlier this year.

Mrs Kate Price, prosecuting, said Howes is a "prolific shop thief" who is responsible for "numerous breaks of bail" and was involved in an incident where he assaulted a police officer and had PAVA incapacitant spray used to subdue him.

She said Howes had committed "straightforward" shop thefts including filling up baskets of goods and "running out" and filling up with diesel and driving off without paying.

Jonathan Mason, representing Howes, said: "The offences speak for themselves. When you lump them all together they do pass the custody threshold.

"This offending was committed out of his need to support his drug habit."

Mr Mason said it was a case of drugs taking over someone's life.

"This is a case of how drugs can take over a life. Up until his early 20s he had not come to the attention of the police.

"Then in September 2022 he started to get involved in drugs and his life started spiralling downwards."

He added that the only way he was going to deal with it was by getting off the streets.

Howes was supported by members of his family in the public gallery who were exchanging smiles and blown kisses.

"He is ashamed at what he has done," said Mr Mason.

"Custody is possibly the best way for him to deal with this," he added. "He accepts he is going to prison.

"He just needs to be off the streets and away from people who drive this habit. His body craves drugs."

Mr Mason said Howes "apologises to all those he has hurt".

Judith Hoy, presiding justice, said: "It would be unjust not to activate the suspended sentences and they will be activated in full, for 39 weeks in prison."

She then ran through a long list of offences and applied punishment to each of them, with many having no separate penalties imposed.

For an assault on an emergency worker on January 13 and having a bladed article on January 29, he was given eight-week prison sentences. For an assault on June 3, a burglary on May 8 and a burglary on May 29, he was given two weeks.

He was handed one-week prison sentences for shoplifting offences on June 1 and June 3, and four weeks for each of four fraud bank card offences, plus two weeks each for taking vehicles without consent, and a theft on May 15.

The total for his added offences came to 32 weeks in prison, all to run consecutively.

These were added to the 39 weeks as his suspended sentences were activated, totalling 71 weeks in prison.

Magistrates did not order Howes to compensate the shops for their losses but ordered him to pay £584 compensation to the owner of the Audi A5, and £50 each to a police officer and a shop worker that he assaulted by beating.