Southsea man jailed for 40 months following burglary series

A 23-year-old man from Southsea has been jailed for 3 years and four months after admitting to a number of charges in relation to burglaries across Hampshire.

Sonnie Marsh, of Victoria Road North, Southsea, pleaded guilty to seven counts of burglary, seven counts of fraud by false representation and one count of handling stolen goods. These incidents occurred between Wednesday 19 August 2020 and Tuesday 5 January 2021 at various locations in Liphook, Portsmouth, Southsea and Winchester.

Portsmouth Crown Court heard on the 15 January how Marsh had begun his spree of offending on Wednesday 19 August whereby he entered a pub in Winchester and stole a charity pot containing £250 and was found later that day attempting to gain entry into a school in Winchester with a view to stealing property. He had then continued his offending by gaining entry to a number of business premises in Liphook and Southsea – stealing a number of purses and wallets and using the cards for his own personal gain in the process. While the Court also heard how he’d stolen a bank card from an individual in Portsmouth and withdrawn £350 in cash.

Marsh pleaded guilty to these offences and was handed a sentence of 40 months imprisonment on Friday 15 January.

He also admitted to being responsible for five other crimes to the court, which were taken into consideration by the Judge when passing sentencing.

Following the sentencing, PC Kirsty Watts from Hampshire Constabulary’s Operation Hawk team, said: “This is a fantastic result for the communities, and those individuals, affected by the crimes committed by Marsh. We’re pleased that the judge handed down a sentence befitting of his crimes.

“Marsh survived on committing these crimes until we were able to apprehend him and put a stop to his offending. Burglary, of any kind, is a terribly intrusive crime and we hope that this shows communities across Hampshire that burglars like Marsh will face justice.”