The burglar cut himself after smashing the kitchen window in order to break in then slept in the homeowner’s bed
A man left his neighbour’s house covered in blood after breaking in and having a “drunken sleepover”. Marcus Shaw smashed the homeowner’s kitchen window in order to gain entry while she was away before apparently sleeping in her bed.
She is still finding bloodstains in her home months later after he inadvertently cut himself upon entering. The burglar says he does not remember his bizarre crime and “cannot explain what happened”.
Liverpool Crown Court heard yesterday, Thursday, that Patricia Finnegan had been away from her home on Coronation Drive in Prescot, which was in the process of being renovated, between April 15 and 20 this year before returning to the address shortly after 4pm on the latter date. Upon entering, she discovered that her rear kitchen window had been smashed with broken glass left strewn across the floor and a trail of blood throughout the property.
READ MORE: Company director ‘sees himself as the victim’ despite what he did in Tesco car parkREAD MORE: Dad says ‘it’s bull****’ after ‘cannabis smell’ led him to destroy couple’s roof
Christopher Taylor, prosecuting, described the matter as “something of an odd case”, with no items having been taken during the break-in but Ms Finnegan’s previously made bed now being “scruffy” and the sheets bloodstained. Several drawers had also been pulled out, although a bag of jewellery which had been set aside in anticipation of its removal from the property remained in situ.
Shaw, who still lives across the street from his victim with his mum, was linked to the burglary via DNA analysis of the dried blood. The 30-year-old has “no recollection of the offence”, but Mr Taylor added: “The defendant has gone in and had some sort of sleepover in a drunken state.”
In a statement which was read out to the court on her behalf, Mrs Finnegan said she had discovered blood “in a number of rooms across the house”, having been due to go on holiday at the time. She added: “What happened affected my time away. I kept think about why he’d been in my house.
“After I returned from holiday, I had to come back to all of the mess that had been made. I started to clean up and noticed how much more blood there was. It appeared that a person had slept in my bed and searched through items within the bedroom. I also noticed an empty wine bottle covered with blood in the spare room.
“I had to rip up the carpets to get rid of all the blood. I didn’t want to sleep in the bed due to them sleeping in it and leaving blood in it. It makes me feel like I don’t want to live in my house any more. He has turned my life upside down. He is getting on with his life as if nothing has affected him.
“How one person can bleed so much is beyond me. Even now I keep finding bloodstains, even on toilet rolls. I feel like I can’t move forward. That a neighbour has done this to me has left me feeling very worried.”
Shaw has two previous convictions, having been jailed for 18 months for possession of MDMA with intent to supply before he was fined for drink driving in 2020. Charles Lander, defending, told the court: “He is devastated at having read that statement. He knows how she feels.
“He says that he has hardly slept since this incident. His life had spiralled since his grandmother’s death. He cannot explain what happened. He has never committed a burglary before.
“He has managed to sort out his drug issue. He has gone to his doctor to seek assistance. The defendant now has work as a traffic operative. He has a solid background.
“He was at a low point. Clearly, with assistance, the court can be confident that there is a realistic prospect of rehabilitation. If he gets sent to prison today, he loses his job. The worry is that he would spiral back to how his life was before.”
Shaw admitted burglary with intent to cause damage. He was handed a 10-month imprisonment suspended for 16 months with a rehabilitation activity requirement of up to 20 days, as well as being told to pay £900 in compensation to Mrs Finnegan.
Sentencing, Recorder Michael Blakey said: “As a consequence of going through the window, you cut yourself. Your blood was all over the place – downstairs, in the bedrooms, on the bed, on bottles.
“In effect, the bed had been used by you no doubt in a drunken state. The lady who saw all of this blood here, there and everywhere must have wondered what on Earth was going on.
“This has been playing on her mind ever since. It has been exceptionally distressing for her. She is extremely anxious at the fact that someone entered her home without any permission to do so. She has indicated that she does not feel safe in her own home.
“You have a limited record. You have no previous convictions for similar offences. It is right to say that you do have your difficulties in terms of your mental health.
“You are in work and earn, it seems, a decent wage. It is sad that you have sorted out your drug problem. It is said that there is a realistic prospect of rehabilitation, that you are in work and you are addressing your difficulties. I hope that is the case.”
