Brothers jailed for pub burglaries
Warren and Westley Linnen stole cash totalling £19,700 and other items estimated to be worth around £1,000.
They took cash, safe boxes, handbags and electrical items from staff rooms and living areas at licensed premises across Essex, Surrey, Sussex, Kent, Thames Valley, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and London.
The brothers were arrested by Essex Police in March 2015 after a public appeal to trace them. The offences were committed over a six week period, while both brothers were on licence, having been released from prison.
They were first charged with burglary and drugs offences but later charged with conspiracy after more than 60 burglaries were brought together in one case. They included offences in Leigh, Southend, Rayleigh, Benfleet, Westcliff, Harlow, Brentwood, Buckhurst Hill, Chelmsford and Pitsea.
The brothers were sentenced to five and a half years' imprisonment each at Chelmsford Crown Court on 24 June.
DC Kirsty Swan from Harlow CID said: “These brothers targeted licenced premises and gained access to private living areas or staff rooms to steal. It was only after arresting them having been wanted for burglaries across Essex and Hertfordshire that I began to fully uncover the number of crimes they had committed.
“This case has involved liaising with officers from seven other forces to pull together all our work to make a strong case which meant the Linnen brothers had no choice but to admit their guilt when faced with the weight of the evidence compiled against them.”
Separately, Merseyside Police have arrested two men for burglaries targeting pubs in the Liverpool area.
Paul Mooney from Bootle has been charged with theft and four counts of burglary and has been remanded in custody. He was wanted by police in connection with a burglary at a pub in Walton. Brett Marrs from Bootle has been arrested and charged with three counts of burglary. Police were looking for him in connection with a burglary at a pub in Bootle.
Was you pub targeted by the Linnen brothers or has your pub ever been burgled? Contact zvxr.oreel@jeoz.pbz
