Croydon burglar returned to victims' homes to steal cars while they reported break-ins to police

A brazen burglar has been jailed after a string of thefts which saw him return to victims' homes and steal from them while they were on the phone reporting him to police.

Tristam Spencer, 35, of Watney Close, Purley, stole cars, gaming consoles and a drone in his campaign of crime.

Shockingly, despite being on bail, Spencer still continued to commit crimes and was later sentenced for repeat burglaries.

Spencer's offences included an incident on January 15, 2021, on Diceland Road in Banstead.

His victims returned home and initially realised their Jaguar XFR had been stolen from the driveway.

When they went into their home, they found that the rear patio doors had been smashed and items including a TV, car keys, an Xbox, a Playstation, a drone and luxury watches had also been stolen.

While on the phone to police the family were even more shocked to realise their second vehicle had been stolen while on the call.

CCTV enquiries in the following weeks outlined the moments that lead up to the burglary and showed Spencer driving to and from the scene, brazenly returning after the initial burglary to steal the victims’ second vehicle.

Spencer was arrested on suspicion of burglary, theft of a motor vehicle and driving offences regarding the double vehicle theft.

He was initially bailed and later charged for these offences in August 2021 and was awaiting trial when he continued stealing cars and other goods from South London and further afield.

Spencer once again came to the attention of the police following a Burglary in Fetcham.

The victim had returned to his home in School Lane to find the rear patio doors of his property had been smashed and multiple items, including car keys, jewellery, sunglasses and a designer bag had been taken.

In similar circumstances to the offences in Banstead, whilst on the phone to the police, the victim witnessed his BMW being driven away from his driveway having returned home to the devastation left after the burglary.

Fortunately, the victim had attached a tracker tag to the set of car keys stolen which was able to provide a live location for police.

When officers attended the address, Spencer was seen inside the property and matched the description of the suspect given by witnesses.

After being arrested, Spencer made a number of significant comments to officers, including “Do you want to retrieve their car?”.

When searching this address, officers found and seized multiple stolen items including jewellery, the BMW key and even post addressed to the victim of the Fetcham burglary.

The victim’s vehicle was located the following day, parked up nearby to his address.

Spencer was charged with a further burglary and theft of motor vehicle offence and remanded into custody.

On Friday, June 10, at Guildford Crown Court, Judge Rufus Taylor sentenced Spencer to seven years imprisonment for all offences.

Investigating Officer PC Joseph Brown said: "Spencer is the definition of a career criminal, who had no remorse for his victims.

"Having just caused devastation within the victim’s homes, he would brazenly return whilst the victims were reporting these crimes to steal what can only be described as their last financial asset from under their noses.

"He would make the journey to Surrey and Berkshire, specifically targeting properties, breaking into people’s homes, and taking anything of value he could get his hands on.

"Having been given an opportunity by the courts initially to consider the crimes he had committed in Banstead, he showed total disregard to the judicial system and the victims by continuing to offend.

"This has been a thorough investigation which has resulted in a substantial sentence, meaning a prolific burglar is off the streets.

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank colleagues and especially members of the public who came forward to provide us with vital information and CCTV which proved crucial in this case, which gave Spencer no option but to plead guilty to his crimes."

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