A PUB burglar ended up in hospital after passers-by, alerted by the publican’s wife, battered him, a court heard.

At the time of the sneak break-in John Conroy was on bail for a raid at a sub-post office in Bartley in the New Forest during which cash worth £18,656 was stolen from a safe.

He and co-accused Lee O’Brien were arrested after stealing the cash from the Village Stores post office in Chinham Road on May 24 last year while the 67-year-old postmistress and her assistant were distracted.

O’Brien, 37, of Bournemouth, has already been jailed for 18 months for that offence but Conroy has only now appeared for sentence after being caught for a burglary at the private quarters of a pub on Wirral.

Daily Echo:

Liverpool Crown Court heard that Conroy went into the post office three times in quick succession making petty purchases and while the staff were distracted by O’Brien and another innocent customer Conroy went behind the counter.

The post-mistress found him kneeling down in front of the unlocked safe and she tried to stop his activities but he pushed past her and she saw he was clutching bank notes, said Paul Blasbery, prosecuting.

“She tried to stop him but he pushed her out of the way and the two men left,” he said.

Mr Blasbery said that they had stolen £13,500 in sterling and £5,156 in foreign currency and the postmistress was left to pay back £8,627 to the Post Office.

Conroy was arrested but released on bail and despite having that offence hanging over him, on June 30 last year he was jailed for 22 months for other burglaries. After his release earlier this year he struck at the Wirral pub.

Lisa Rudis-Jones discovered Conroy in the private quarters of her home above The Ship public house putting two laptops in a back pack on September 21.

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When she challenged him he cheekily claimed to be the landlord and she ordered him to put the computers back which he did and then went downstairs to the pub hotly pursued by Mrs Rudis-Jones.

On nearing the exit door she bravely grabbed him and started screaming for her husband. When he got to the exit doors he wriggled out of his jacket and fled down the street directly opposite, said Mr Blasbery.

“Everything became a blur for her but she could hear people shouting. He was pursued by members of the public who attempted to detain him and he was clearly injured during the struggle. An ambulance was called and he was taken to hospital.

“Police officers attended the hospital and arrested him and he tried to discharge himself and ripped a cannula out of his arm. He was advised to stay and complete his treatment,” said Mr Blasbery.

40-year-old Conroy pleaded guilty to the burglary at the pub in Market Street, Hoylake, Wirral and the post office burglary. The defendant, of Tolpuddle Way, Kirkdale, Liverpool, has 37 previous convictions, including burglaries.

Jailing him for a total of three years Judge Alan Conrad, QC, said that he has a bad criminal record for dishonesty, many because of his drug addiction.

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Charles Lander, defending, said that Conroy had received “summary justice” from the passers-by who caught him and his injuries were still evident when he appeared at the court on an earlier occasion.

He had made progress while in prison serving his last sentence and had gone down to Southampton as his mum had had a triple heart-by-pass but then got involved in the post office offence.

Paul Blasbery, Crown Advocate with Mersey Cheshire Crown Prosecution Service, said: “John Conroy is a prolific criminal with a number of previous convictions for burglary and drugs. He was awaiting sentence for a burglary at a post office in the Southampton area, when he committed this offence.

"He went into the flat above the Ship inn in Hoylake, intending to steal.

"He was confronted by the victim, but he ran off. He was pursued by members of the public, who attempted to detain him and he was injured during a struggle.

"He was taken to hospital and was then arrested. He tried to discharge himself from the hospital, ripping out a tube that had been put into his arm to administer medication.

"He pleaded guilty to burglary and was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment.

"He was sentenced to a further 18 months imprisonment for the burglary in Southampton, resulting in a total sentence of 3 years imprisonment.”