Bridlington burglar on cocaine used boxer shorts as a 'makeshift balaclava' covering his face during Leeds home break-in

By Nick Frame
Published 21st Dec 2022, 11:45 BST
Updated 22nd Dec 2022, 11:22 BST
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A prolific burglar who wore a pair of his boxer shorts over his face while breaking into a home in Leeds has been returned to jail.

Craig Sharp was seen on CCTV on the driveway of the house on Gamble Lane in Farnley in the early hours of November 29.

The sole female occupant was woken by her house alarm being triggered and went downstairs to find the back door open and the lock had been removed and left in a plant pot.

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The police were called and around 90 minutes later reports emerged of a man and woman acting suspiciously in the Whitehall Road area of Wortley. They identified Sharp, who tried to run as the police tried to stop him. He was found hiding in a nearby garden.

You're knickered....Craig Sharp was caught wearing boxer shorts as a makeshift balaclava.You're knickered....Craig Sharp was caught wearing boxer shorts as a makeshift balaclava.
You're knickered....Craig Sharp was caught wearing boxer shorts as a makeshift balaclava.

He had a pair of boxer shorts around his neck that prosecutor Samuel Roxborough told Leeds Crown Court were being used as a “makeshift balaclava”. He was also found with two sets of gloves. The 36-year-old, of Cardigan Road, Bridlington, tested positive for cocaine and gave a no-comment interview to police. The court was told he had been jailed in April 2020 for 44 months for dangerous driving and was returned on licence following his latest offence.

Appearing in court from HMP Leeds, he admitted a charge of attempted dwelling burglary and going equipped for burglary. He was jailed for two years. He has 22 convictions for 68 offences, including multiple burglaries. He was convicted of 18 burglaries in 2001 alone. Mitigating, Matthew Stewart said Sharp returned to stealing because he had fallen into debt due to his drug habit. He said: “He accepts wrongdoing, he is remorseful and extremely sorry for his actions.

"He was released on licence about eight months ago and moved to Bridlington to live a crime-free life. But he feels he became isolated, moved back to Leeds, fell back into using crack cocaine and owed a debt.”

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Judge Andrew Stubbs KC told him: “You have been a prolific criminal and burglar in the past. Although you made efforts to stay clean from the drugs that have blighted your life, you came to Leeds from Bridlington and fell back in with a bad crowd.”