Burglar called taxi from victim’s home phone

A burglar made a £3,000 raid on his neighbour’s home – and then called a taxi on his victim’s phone to make his getaway.

Thief Gareth Waith, 22, was jailed for three years after admitting taking a £3,500 haul from his neighbour’s house in Greenfarm Road, Ely, Cardiff.

Victims Colin Bell, 32, an asbestos remover, Katie Battiscombe, 24, and children Corey, five, and Gabriel, four, were out when Waith broke into the house through a window. Cardiff Crown Court heard how the Bell family lost their mobile phones, DVD player, laptop computer, 26-inch TV and computer games in the Halloween attack, which had a “massive impact” on the family.

Ms Battiscombe, whose family still fear being burgled again, said today she couldn’t believe Waith’s nerve to call a taxi from her house. “I couldn’t stop laughing when I found out,” she said. “The nerve of some people is just unbelievable.”

“The thought of him calling a taxi from my house phone and then just sitting on my wall with all my stuff, waiting for it to arrive, is just ridiculous.”

Waith, also of Greenfarm Road, Ely, admitted a charge of burglary. Recorder Charles Fox, said: “He was bang to rights because he left his fingerprints behind.”