EU Migrant Burglar ‘Campaign Of Offending Against Elderly’

A convicted Slovak burglar, who was allowed to come to the UK under EU migration rules, has been jailed for launching a “campaign” of offending against the elderly in Liverpool and Manchester. Robert Slepcik continued his career as a burglar shortly after he arrived in December 2013, according to the Manchester Evening News.

He was sentenced to five years and four months behind bars at Liverpool Crown Court. The homeless 22-year-old admitted in court in that he had been convicted of similar offenses in Slovakia. Under EU rules he was allowed to come to the UK despite his convictions, and cannot be deported when he leaves prison.

Graham Pickavance, prosecuting, told the court his campaign included crimes committed elderly people’s houses and care homes. He began began by striking at homes in the working class Wavertree district of Liverpool stealing an iPad along with jewellery, alcohol, televisions and a laptop computer.

Then in August2014  he broke into a further two properties in Manchester before taking £100 in cash and three mobile phones from another property in Liverpool.

By September his campaign against the elderly was in full swing and he targeted Greenacres Care Home and St Martin’s Care Centre, both in Liverpool. The properties are home to vulnerable older people, who proved to be easy targets.

Although Slepcik pleaded guilty to ten counts of burglary, and asked for nine to be taken into account, his defence said that criminal gangs had been the masterminds behind his offending. His barrister Kenneth Heckle claimed his client had been coerced into carrying out the burglaries and that those responsible were more ‘criminally sophisticated’ than his client was.

Judge Brian Lewis sentenced Slepcik to five years and four months behind bars. He said: “Within three months of your arrival here you started a six-month campaign of burglary, repeatedly committing offences of burglary, against people’s homes.

“Burglary is an offence that causes people very great distress, not just because of the property stolen but also the invasion of their privacy and the violation of their homes. Some people, particularly elderly people, never fully recover.”

The Police now recognise that EU migrants from poorer countries like Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria are being used by criminal gangs to commit crimes. However, authorities can do little to resolve the problem as millions of Eastern Europeans are now entitled to come to the UK without any prospect of a job.