Overview
- Gary Shackleton, 39, pleaded guilty at Newcastle Crown Court to burglary and theft.
- On December 12, he entered a ground-floor flat on Dilston Road where a woman slept with her six-year-old son.
- He took a saw from the kitchen, demanded money, and confronted the family in their home.
- The woman’s husband fought him, causing facial injuries before Shackleton fled on a stolen bicycle.
- Police arrested him on Elswick Road after hospital treatment, and the court heard he has 74 prior convictions, with the defence citing addiction issues.