Brighton burglar spared prison

A man broke into a house in Brighton, stole car keys and drove off with an axe in the victim’s orange Renault Captur, a court heard today.

Emmanuel Tshibemba, 32, unemployed, of Abbotsford Road, in Tottenham, London, targeted the house, in Roedean Crescent, Brighton, on Friday 12 June.

But he was spotted by neighbours even before he burgled the home of Paul Hawkins and Danielle Chrysanthou.

And as he tried to make off, police closed in and Tshibemba abandoned the Captur before being subdued with Captor – a synthetic pepper spray – and placed under arrest.

Tshibemba, who is Dutch, was sentenced this afternoon (Friday 28 August) by Judge Shani Barnes at Hove Crown Court.

Judge Barnes, the former honorary recorder of Brighton and Hove, gave the jobless Londoner a second chance, handing down a 10-month prison term, suspended for a year.

Sussex Police said: “A burglar who stole a car from outside a house in Brighton has been sentenced after he was arrested by police officers alerted by vigilant neighbours.

“Emmanuel Tshibemba, 32, unemployed, of Abbotsford Road, London, was given a ten-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months, at Hove Crown Court on Friday 28 August.

“He had broken into the house in Roedean Crescent, Brighton, in the early afternoon of Friday 12 June, took house and car keys and driven off in the car parked outside.

“However, neighbours had already noticed him acting suspiciously in the area. Police had been called and were searching the area.

“They spotted Tshibemba in the car which he then abandoned and ran off.

“He was arrested after a violent struggle in which the officers had to use captor spray and batons to secure his safe arrest.”

Investigator Matt Brooks said: “It was thanks to the prompt calls by neighbours and swift arrival of police that this man was arrested and brought to justice.”