Detectives in Brighton have charged a man with a series of burglaries during December and January.
Derek Antwi, 28, of Upper Hollingdean Road in Brighton, was arrested by officers from Brighton and Hove’s Tactical Enforcement Unit on Tuesday (January 18th) in connection to a number of investigations.
He was charged with robbery, handling stolen goods, two counts of residential burglary, three counts of fraud and two counts of theft of a pedal cycle, and remanded in custody pending a court hearing on Wednesday, February 16th.
The charges follow a reported break-in at Glendale Road, Brighton, on December 10th, where the residents returned home to find the property had been ransacked and various items including jewellery, cash and credit cards were missing.
Their neighbour’s bicycle had also been stolen.
The stolen credit cards were used at various convenience stores shortly after the burglary was believed to have taken place.
The next day, December 11th, police received reports of a property in Beechwood Avenue having been ransacked and burgled in a similar way.
On December 16th, a resident of Silverdale Road confronted a man in his garden at 11.30pm who was attempting to steal a bicycle. The intruder threatened to stab the victim and left the scene carrying the bike, while a second bike was also found to be missing.
A Stanford Avenue resident also reported spotting a man take a pair of trainers from his front doorstep on January 10th, and his neighbour found his house had been ransacked and burgled shortly after.
Both victims confronted a man nearby who they believed to be responsible, but they were threatened by him before he fled the scene.
Antwi was identified as a suspect in every incident and a search of an address linked to him found a number of items linking him to the offences, including stolen property.
Detective Chief Inspector Cath O’Connor, of Brighton CID, said: “Each of these incidents was carried out with total disregard for the victims and their property, not only through threats of violence but the violation of their personal spaces.
“Derek Antwi is an individual well known to Sussex Police and we are pleased to have gathered enough evidence to secure charges that will bring him before the courts.
“I would like to thank the victims for their support throughout the investigation and now look forward to the outcome of the judicial process.”
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