A PROLIFIC thief is beginning a three-year jail term today after acting as a look-out during a burglary at the home of woman with breast cancer.

Father-of-seven Floyd Wright, of Blenheim Road, Ipswich, helped an accomplice break-into the home of Cindy Holian in Tuddenham Avenue, Ipswich, while out on licence from a previous prison sentence.

Jailing the 44-year-old at Ipswich Crown Court, Judge Rupert Overbury said: “Anyone who burgles someone else’s home – particularly at night, particularly where other people are involved – and takes their personal possessions, destroys people’s confidence. It is something that lasts forever and ever.”

The court heard Wright had 30 previous convictions for burglary, dishonesty and violence.

Last year he was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment for a house burglary and a non-domestic burglary, as well as asking for seven other domestic burglaries to be taken into consideration.

Peter Barlex, mitigating, said: “He’s extremely upset and distressed for the victim of this burglary.”

Earlier prosecutor Godfried Duah said Ms Holian was asleep in her home when the burglary occurred just after 1am on June 24.

When officers arrived just before 1.20am they saw Wright run off from Tuddenham Avenue into Suffolk Road. He was told to stop and dropped some receipts on the ground.

The court heard the receipts had been in Ms Holian’s purse, which was later discovered nearby. Two mobile phones stolen from Ms Holian’s home were subsequently discovered in Wright’s possession.

Wright was released from Norwich prison on November 21 last year.

A week after the burglary Ms Holian’s home was targeted again when two bikes belonging to her daughters were stolen from a shed.