Coventry burglar and car thief, who hid under bed, jailed for 12 years
Thomas McDonagh stole almost £240,000 worth of goods and caused nearly £50,000 in criminal damage
Last updated 17th Apr 2024
A Coventry man has been jailed after a Summer-long crime spree, in which he stole almost £240,000 worth of goods and caused nearly £50,000 in criminal damage.
Thomas McDonagh was jailed on 12 April for 28 separate offences including theft, burglary and handling stolen goods.
All the offences took place between May and August 2023 and saw McDonagh steal dozens of cars and number plates, as well as break-ins at businesses across Coventry.
McDonagh, 44, was jailed for 12 years and three months when he was sentenced at Warwick Crown Court.
His crimes all followed a similar pattern, with McDonagh stealing the cars or their number plates, before using them to ram the shutters of industrial units in Coventry.
Primarily working alone, McDonagh was captured on CCTV in a number of places stealing cars and motorbikes, tools and other items.
The crimes were so brazenly carried out, with McDonagh clearly identifiable in CCTV. On one occasion, McDonagh even stole a bike from a 12-year-old boy, pushing him off and riding away on it.
This was found and returned to the boy a short time later.
Despite his efforts to evade capture, McDonagh was tracked down and arrested at an address in the city at the end of August 2023.
McDonagh, who was found by officers hiding under a bed, was subsequently charged with 49 offences in two separate indictments, with the value of stolen goods taken by McDonagh believed to be nearly £240,000, with criminal damage of nearly £50,000.
Following extensive work by officers from Coventry's proactive CID team, we were able to secure charges against McDonagh for 28 of the 49 offences: 15 on the first indictment and 13 on the second.
West Midlands Police said: "Vehicle crime remains a priority for us and we regularly take action against suspected chop shops and car thieves.
"We do not under-estimate the impact this crime has on people’s lives and are working hard to bring these offenders to justice.
"We know the huge inconvenience of vehicle crime on your livelihoods, and personal lives, which is why we're determined to take this action.
"We have launched a major new operation to target serious and organised crime across the West Midlands."
Operation Target sees West Midlands Police take a stand against a range of serious and organised crime offences ranging from drug dealing and burglary to cybercrime and fraud.