GAZETTE & HERALD: Burglar Benjamin Quarmby who drove a car at the landlady of the Royal Oak pub in Corsham High Street as she tried to prevent him escaping with thousands of pounds worth of property, has been jailed for four-and-a-half years.

The 32-year-old heroin addict escaped a jail term in November last year when a judge put him on a community based drug treatment and testing order to try and get him off drugs.

But Quarmby continued to offend and was twice caught driving while disqualified, once also driving dangerously through Melksham.

Despite being arrested, Quarmby, who has more than 130 previous convictions, was released on bail by magistrates only to go on to burgle a house.

The crook, from Bradford on Avon, was caught red handed in a room where a Czech policeman was sleeping. He was found to have burgled another room at the property and had the policeman's mobile phone in his pocket.

A judge at Swindon crown court heard how Quarmby was put on the drug treatment and testing order for a string of offences including five house burglaries.

During the first of the raids he woke up householder Barbara Rawlings, 58, who went downstairs to find him in her kitchen. As he made off with £50 cash from her home at Great Ashley House in Bradford on Avon she hit him over the head with a glass but was traumatised by the event.

A week later he broke into the Royal Oak on High Street, Corsham, and left landlady Julie Taylor, 38, bruised and battered after driving into her.

He was loading thousands of pounds worth of cigarettes and cash into Mrs Taylor's daughter's car when she heard noises and looked out of the window to see what was going on.

She rushed out to confront him and was trapped between the car and the wall as he made off in the Peugeot 205.

Quarmby was arrested the following week when he was caught breaking into a number of properties in Westbury, including another pub.

Quarmby, of Lower Westwood, Bradford on Avon, pleaded guilty to burglary, dangerous driving, two counts of driving while disqualified and without insurance and breaching a drug treatment and testing order.