A man has been jailed for a total of three years and ten months for robbing a Bradford newsagent and ransacking a disabled man’s home.

Ashley Hemmings, 28, was a “third strike” housebreaker with a record of 38 criminal convictions for 50 various types of offences, Bradford Crown Court heard this week.

He was sentenced on a video link to Leeds Prison for three sets of offences, beginning with the house burglary on August 19, 2018.

Prosecutor David Ward said Hemmings, of no fixed address, smashed kitchen and bathroom windows at the address in Wallingford Mount, Allerton, Bradford, while the householder was out for the evening.

The man, who is registered disabled, was alerted by the police to the burglary after a neighbour spotted the damage to his property.

Mr Ward said an untidy search had been made and blood left at the scene was a DNA match for Hemmings.

Property valued at £446 had been stolen and the damage was estimated at £400. Among items taken in the burglary were a laptop computer, cuff links, tie pins, wrist watches and cigarettes.

The court heard that the householder had not slept well after his home was raided.

Hemmings struck again on December 29 last year, Mr Ward said.

He and an accomplice attempted to burgle a house, burgled a shed and stole a SatNav from a car.

Then, at 7.25pm on January 29 this year, Hemmings committed the robbery at School Green Newsagent on Thornton Road.

He lifted the counter to snatch cigarettes, pushing past the woman running the shop and getting into a struggle with her husband.

His female victim was shaken and shocked but the couple were unhurt, Mr Ward said.

It wasn’t known how many cigarettes were taken but Hemmings made one grab before fleeing the shop.

Mr Ward said the offences were aggravated by Hemmings’ previous convictions.

“Clearly this individual has caused quite a bit of misery to members of the public over the years and isn’t responding to sentences,” he told the court.

Hemmings’ solicitor advocate, Saf Salam, said his client had been in custody since February 6.

He was the father of two young children and his mother was very unwell. Hemmings knew he was going to prison for a lengthy period of time.

Judge Colin Burn jailed him for a total of 32 months for the burglary offences with 14 months to run consecutively for the robbery.