'Jail absolutely terrifies him' - Barrister pleads for former prison officer turned burglar to be spared jail

Suzanne Francis, prosecuting, said that Ward had targeted the home of his fiancee's parents in Coalport, while they were on holiday in January.

He stole jewellery and watches worth a total of £5,500.

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The court was told that the couple had been away for several weeks, and neighbours contacted them to alert them that a window was open.

When they returned they discovered the missing items.

Ms Francis said that doorbell CCTV subsequently revealed Ward entering the property, using his fiancee's key to get in.

A box he was seen carrying in the footage was later discovered in his car.

The court was told that as police investigated the theft Ward provided police with an email purporting to be from his employers, saying he had been in a meeting at the time of the crime.

Ms Francis said it subsequently came to light that "the email was not from his employers".

Danny Smith, mitigating on Ward's behalf, said he had suffered trauma during a decade working as a tactical response officer in prisons.

He described him as "the type of officer called into riot situations, called into hostage-type situations".

"As a result of that public service he has been injured with stab wounds all over his body."

He said Ward had suffered both physical and "mental" effects including post-traumatic stress disorder, for which he had been prescribed medication which he then started to misuse.

A report prepared for the sentencing hearing said that the use of the drugs would have impaired his judgement at the time of the offence.

He added: "At the time of this offending he started to run into financial difficulties and he is someone who does not ask for help very easily at all and crossed the moral threshold to steal from his effective in-laws."

'He will be a target in there'

Mr Smith said that Ward has no previous convictions, and said the offending was a "one-off" and "unlikely to happen again".

Addressing Judge Lowe, he said that no judge would be criticised for sending Ward to jail, but warned that because of his previous profession the defendant would suffer time in prison "more acutely" than other burglars.

He said: "He will have to spend any time in isolation and in extreme fear because of his previous role."

He said that prison "absolutely terrifies him", adding: "Because he will be a target once he gets in there."

Addressing Ward, Judge Lowe said: "I do not pretend this is an easy sentence to get right.

"I start with the obvious truth that anyone who breaks into a person's home, even if they do it with a key so there is no damage, it is still an invasion of the place people are meant to feel safe."

He added: "The real question is whether or not I can properly suspend [the] sentence. When people burgle people's houses generally the view is people need to understand you do that and you go away.

"On the other hand, you are not the typical burglar that appears before the crown court. You are 37, you have never been in trouble before, let alone for burglary."

Judge Lowe said he also took into account the mental health issues suffered by Ward and his public service working for the prison service.

Ward was sentenced to a total of 20 months in prison, suspended for 18 months.

He must also complete 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days, as well as 150 hours of unpaid work.

The court also put in place a three-year restraining order preventing him from contacting his victims.

Judge Lowe urged Ward not to miss the unpaid work appointments, or commit any offences which would breach the suspended sentence, adding: "You're a big bloke but nevertheless, you know what happens in prison."