Store thieves jailed
FIVE men who burgled a shop and stole thousands of pounds worth of mobile phones all received custodial sentences on Thursday.Simon Chang, Mark Lloyd, Lee Hodgin and brothers Gary and Danny Woodward all pleaded guilty at Liverpool Crown Court to burglary.
Brendan Burke, prosecuting, told the court on November 27 last year, the Woolworth store in Liscard was broken into.
He said police officers had noticed members of the group acting suspiciously in the town centre and eventually stopped Chang in his BMW.
Another car, in which Hodgin was travelling, was also stopped by officers. Inside they found crow bars, a balaclava, a screwdriver, pliers and two boxes containing mobile phones and two game consoles.
Said Mr Burke: "The value of the goods found was £6,789 and it was all recovered."
Gary Woodward, 21, of Dundonald Street, Birkenhead, was jailed for 15 months and Lee Hodgin, 18, of Tollemache Road, Birkenhead, was sentenced to 12 months' detention.
Danny Woodward, 20, of Bidston Avenue, Claughton, was sentenced to nine months' detention. He had also pleaded guilty to dangerous driving.
Chang, 27, and Lloyd, 26, both of Alwen Street, Birkenhead, were each jailed for nine months.
All were banned from driving for two years.
Judge Denis Clark told them: "The public have a rose-tinted view that people go out to steal because they can't feed their families or pay the electricity bill.
"That's absolute nonsense - here are people, with good lifestyles and some of whom have jobs, going out to burgle as a planned enterprise in a BMW. It's just greed."
Vodafone and Orange both have base stations on top of the block of 86 council flats alongside a radio mast used by emergency services.
Residents have begun to fear emissions from the mast are dangerous after losing five neighbours to cancer and two to other serious illnesses recently.