Overview
- George Knight and Matthew Francis were each sentenced to 37 months at Guildford Crown Court on March 17 for conspiracy to commit burglary dwelling with intent to steal.
- The pair broke into homes in the early hours to grab car keys while residents slept, then drove off in the victims’ vehicles.
- One victim used a mobile app tied to the car’s telematics to track a stolen BMW, which officers later found crashed in undergrowth in Leatherhead.
- Police located a stolen Audi A1 using ANPR, which uses cameras to read number plates, then ended a pursuit in Leatherhead and arrested Knight near a petrol station and Francis with help from a dog unit.
- Both men were arrested on suspicion of burglary, failing to stop and dangerous driving and were ordered to pay £228 in costs, with police urging residents to secure doors and keep keys out of sight.