A serial burglar has been jailed after he gained entry into a dozen vulnerable and elderly people’s homes by tricking them into believing he was a police officer.
David Kerrigan, 38, was sentenced to nine years and 10 months’ imprisonment at Snarebrook Crown Court on Friday, 26 November.
He had previously pleaded guilty to 12 counts of burglary and one count of racially aggravated harassment.
The thief carried out a spate of distraction burglaries across London where he posed as a police officer in a bid to gain his victims’ trust and access their homes.
Targeting elderly victims aged between 61 and 96, he wore dark coloured clothes and produced a fake warrant card claiming to be a police officer.
He would then tell them a fabricated story about two people being arrested nearby with stolen property and would ask to go inside to check if any of the items had been stolen from their house.
His victims fell for the rouse and invited him in, allowing him free rein of their home where he would search the rooms for anything to steal. Sometimes he would ask the victims where they kept their cash before later stealing it after the hiding place was revealed.
In total, he stole wallets and purses which contained approximately £4,000 in cash as well as jewellery and watches. He also stole bank cards which he then used in local shops.
While he was caught on CCTV in the shops using the cards none of the property was ever recovered.
The burglaries took place in Golders Green, Gunnersbury, Chiswick, South Tottenham, East Ham, Kensington, Acton, Leyton, Brent Park and Walthamstow,
Detective Sergeant Keith Faris, who led the investigation, said: “This was a fantastic effort by my team, whose hard work resulted in Kerrigan having no choice but to plead guilty due to the overwhelming evidence they uncovered.
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“Kerrigan preyed upon the elderly and vulnerable and abused their trust by posing as a plain clothed police officer to walk away with their hard earned money and valuables. We will not tolerate this type of offending and we will robustly target and bring to justice those who think they can take advantage of the vulnerable and elderly.”
