Drunken burglar refused release for Christmas
A drunken burglar who forced his way into a woman's home has failed to persuade top judges to free him from jail so he can spend Christmas at home with his new baby.
Adebayo Joan, 31, had been drinking and smoking drugs when he knocked on the door of a Birmingham woman's home in November last year.
He pushed his way into the hall when she opened the door and, after looking around confusedly, left without stealing anything or threatening the householder.
Joan, of Kinsey Road, Smethwick, was identified by his fingerprints and jailed for two years three months in June at Birmingham Crown Court.
He admitted burglary with intent to steal.
Yesterday, he asked Mr Justice Holroyde and Mr Justice Lewis, sitting at London's Criminal Appeal Court, to cut his sentence so he could spend Christmas at home with his family.
Via a videolink from prison, Joan, who endured a difficult upbringing in war-torn Liberia, told the judges "I have a newborn baby and I have never seen the kid.
"I just want to spend Christmas with them."
He also told the court he has beaten his drink and drug demons and has been doing good work behind bars, acting as a shoulder to cry on for depressed fellow prisoners.
However, despite his good behaviour and his 'sad personal history', the judges refused his application for permission to appeal.
Mr Justice Holroyde said he had a 'bad previous criminal record', for 55 offences, and his invasion of the woman's home had had a life-changing impact on her.
"This was a stiff sentence, but not one which can be said to be manifestly excessive," the appeal judge concluded.
