Thief tells police ‘you’re lucky I’m not grooming girls’ after London crime spree

Thief tells police ‘you’re lucky I’m not grooming girls’ after London crime spree The court heard Neville Stanbury has 50 previous convictions stretching back more than 30 years - Bookmark A prolific burglar who committed a £19,000 spree in London’s financial district told police they were "lucky I’m not grooming girls" following his arrest, a court has heard. Neville Stanbury, 58, targeted a series of offices and businesses in the Square Mile between December 2025 and March this year, defying a decade-long prohibition on entering the area. During questioning, Stanbury confessed to the break-ins, telling officers they were "lucky he had not done worse". He admitted he had "probably done it" when confronted with burglaries he couldn't recall, explaining his crimes were to fund a heroin addiction. At Southwark Crown Court on Thursday, Judge Christopher Hehir sentenced Stanbury to three years and four months in prison, issuing a grave warning that he risks dying behind bars if he fails to overcome his drug dependency. “Ultimately the only person who can truly help you is you,” he told him. “No-one puts a gun to your head and forces you to take heroin or other drugs, and no-one puts a gun to your head and forces you to go out burgling. “You have a choice – go on wasting more of your life in prison and possibly dying in prison, or take a step back, look in the mirror, and resolve to change your ways.” The judge said Stanbury was “confrontational” with those trying to help him, that past efforts to avoid prison in favour of rehabilitation “simply have not worked”, and added: “Your tendency is to blame others for your misfortunes, rather than asking yourself whether you might be to blame.” The court heard Stanbury has 50 previous convictions stretching back more than 30 years, covering 140 offences with the “vast majority” for non-dwelling burglaries. In 2022, Stanbury was handed a criminal behaviour order banning him from the City of London until the end of 2031, after he went on a £40,000 spree of criminal damage and theft. He had been caught tailgating his way into buildings to get past security, before swiping valuables and leaving. In 2016, Stanbury was jailed for four and a half years after using the same method to steal £32,000 worth of items in a five-month burglary campaign in London’s legal district. In his latest offences, prosecutor Matthew Jolliffe said Stanbury was repeatedly caught on CCTV committing the burglaries, and the crimes were linked together thanks to the green cap he wore for each break-in. On December 28, he raided recruitment agency GH Engage, gym Roar Fitness, and insurance firm Zego at an office block on Eastcheap, stealing laptops and phones worth more than £6,000. On January 23, he smashed through the front doors to get into barristers’ chambers at 3 Hare Court in Inner Temple, the court heard. “Once inside, he remained within the premises for seven minutes before leaving,” said Mr Jolliffe. “He is known to these premises as he was previously banned after entering the premises with intent to steal.” On March 18, Stanbury broke into the offices of IT firm Wavenet, on Minories, and was caught on CCTV leaving with a rucksack filled with electronic items. He raided the offices of finance company VFX and insurers City and Commercial, both in Duke’s Place, taking laptops worth thousands of pounds. And he was caught on CCTV stealing electronic goods worth more than £6,000 that he loaded into a bag at the offices of Hubflow in Lombard Street on April 4. After his arrest four days later, Stanbury replied “so what?” when confronted over his breach of the criminal behaviour order, the court heard. The prosecutor added that he also insisted he was “not some druggy”, but took heroin to “calm himself down”. Stanbury, from Hither Green, in Lewisham, southeast London, pleaded guilty to seven burglaries, one count of attempted burglary, and breach of a criminal behaviour order. [Image text:] CROWN COUET SOUTHWARS