A PROLIFIC burglar who dragged a householder down the street when he tried to stop him stealing his car at dead of night has been jailed for eight years.

Martin Cawley, who had a "staggering" 25 charges of housebreaking on his record of 216 criminal offences, crashed the vehicle three times within yards of his victim's address in Shapla Court, Keighley.

Brendan Cutler, who grabbed the driver's door handle of his Suzuki Vitara as Cawley made off in it, was dragged 20ft along the road, Bradford Crown Court heard yesterday.

Cawley, 43, of Harewood Road, Keighley, had burgled another house only days earlier, prosecutor Emma Downing said.

He had committed two offences of shoplifting at the Airedale Shopping Centre in Keighley and racially harassed and abused a security guard who told him to leave because he was banned from the premises.

Cawley was in breach of a two year suspended jail sentence for offences including two house burglaries, assaulting a police officer and criminal damage. He had also been subject to a community order for harassment, assault and breaching the suspended sentence.

He was on bail for the shop thefts and racially aggravated harassment when he forced his way into an unoccupied bungalow in Oak Bank Court, Keighley, between January 4 and 7.

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He ransacked every room before stealing £860 of electrical items and £150 of jewellery.

The police were on to him when his DNA was recovered from blood found at the scene.

Cawley then burgled the Shapla Court address at 3.20am on January 14 while Mr Cutler and his family were at home.

He stole a handbag and the key to Mr Cutler's vehicle that was parked on the drive.

Family members were alerted to the break-in by their dog barking and Mr Cutler saw his car being driven off.

When Cawley crashed into a metal fence, Mr Cutler was able to seize hold of the locked driver's door.

He let go and Cawley hit another fence and crashed into a wall.

Mr Cutler again took hold of the driver's door handle and was dragged 20ft before Cawley abandoned the car and ran off. He was detained by other members of the Cutler family while hiding under steps nearby.

He had with him a bag containing two toy rifles and a BB gun.

Cawley's barrister, Ken Green, said the defendant wanted to speak to the judge himself.

Cawley told Recorder Ben Nolan QC he was a recovering alcoholic who no longer took Class A drugs, although he conceded he tested positive for cocaine after the racially aggravated harassment offence.

He claimed he crashed Mr Cutler's vehicle in snow because he could not see, and drove off because he feared for his safety.

Recorder Nolan labelled Cawley a "prodigious burglar" with a staggering 57 convictions for 216 offences, 157 of those for crimes of dishonesty.

He was jailed for six years, plus the two year suspended prison sentence, and banned from driving for five years.