#Burglary, # AppleAirTag, #Surrey, #UK, #UKCrime
IBNS: A serial burglar, who stole items of more than 800,000 pounds ($1,009,132) in value, was finally caught with the help of Apple AirTag which was kept in one of the stolen luggage.
Mari Dinjaku, 38, of Munro Avenue, Wokingham, was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment for conspiracy to commit burglary.
Dinjaku was arrested at his home address when an Apple AirTag left in the suitcase helped officers track it to the location, Surrey Police said in a statement.
Designer clothing and handbags and high-value jewellery were also found from his home, police said.
A search of the house also uncovered walkie-talkies docked in the utility room, false documents, a large amount of cash in several currencies, gloves and face coverings, and 15 mobile phones. One of these phones, which was forensically linked to Dinjaku, was in the area of the Woking burglary at the time of the offence.
Dinjaku was also forensically linked to two vehicles near his home address, both of which had cloned number plates. One of these vehicles was connected to a second burglary in Farnham in December 2022.
At this burglary, a car was stolen along with two safes containing jewellery.
The combined value of the items stolen was believed to be in excess of £350,000.
Some of these items were later recovered at the address in Wokingham.
Shortly before the burglary took place, a neighbour noticed a vehicle acting suspiciously in the area and took a video of it.
The distinctive marking on its side matches that of one of the two vehicles recovered in Reading.
A walkie-talkie was recovered at the address in Farnham.
It was the same make and model as the set recovered in Reading, which was missing a single walkie-talkie.
Dinjaku was also linked to a further two burglaries: one in Limpsfield, and one in Manchester.
He was charged with conspiracy to commit burglary between March 2022 and January 2023 on Wednesday, 10 May. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced at Guildford Crown Court on Monday, 21 August.
During sentencing, the judge highlighted the sophisticated nature of the offences and their financial and psychological impact on the victims.
The overall estimated loss from the three burglaries is thought to be in excess of £800,000.
Investigating officer PC Tom Hinch, said,”Mari Dinjaku caused significant distress and financial loss to the victims he burgled.”
“These were serious offences, committed with significant planning and a disregard for the impact that breaking into somebody’s home can have,” Hinch said.
“He has rightly been given a significant custodial sentence. We continue to pursue criminals who conspire to commit offences of this nature in Surrey,” Hinch said.
