A burglar was linked to a £500 meat raid on a Marks and Spencer branch after leaving his blood behind in the store.
Serial offender Anthony Atherton "fell back into his old ways" and broke into the shop in his desperation to feed his drug habit following the break-up of the dad-of-two's family. Less than a week later, the 38-year-old smashed his way through a Starbucks drive-thru with a hammer and dragged female baristas around by their hair.
Liverpool Crown Court heard today, Thursday, that he targeted M&S Foodhall on Queens Drive overnight on October 11 last year. The court was played footage from the closed shop in West Derby, which showed Atherton approaching in a bobble hat, putting a pair of gloves on and throwing a rock at the storefront three times in order to smash the window.
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Inside, he was seen tearing down protective foil curtain guarding the fridges before filling a crate with £574 of meat products and fleeing with the stolen loot. The premises had to remain shut until 11.30am the following day due to the damage caused by the break-in.
Peter Hussey, prosecuting, described how the break-in caused overall losses of £11,200 in goods stolen, a loss of trade and damage. A DNA sample taken from left at the scene matched that of the defendant, who is believed to have cut himself on broken glass upon entering.
Atherton, of no fixed address, has 21 previous convictions for 46 offences - including 10 for burglary, robbery or attempted robbery. He was jailed for four-and-a-half years in February after a robbery at the Starbucks on Edge Lane, which occurred six days after the M&S burglary.
Staff were left terrified after the armed man smashed his way through a drive-thru window with a hammer early in the morning, climbed inside, grabbed hold of two workers and dragged them around by their and hair.
Atherton, then of Sapphire Road in Old Swan, demanded access to the safe and smashed up the till but left empty-handed. "Cowering and hiding" employees were forced to flee to the nearby KFC restaurant.
His rap sheet also includes a seven-year sentence for raiding a bookmakers on Aigburth Road and threatening staff members with a gun, which was later recovered alongside two bullets, in January 2007. This also saw him use a claw hammer to break through the security partition and smash the tills.
John Rowan, defending, admitted that his client had a "lengthy record" and said that non-dwelling burglaries were his "MO". Atherton, who suffers from bipolar disorder and depression, had made efforts to turn his life around following his release from last spell behind bars in 2018.
Mr Rowan told the court: "He was determined to deal with the issues underpinning his offending behaviour. He had a newborn child at that time.
"His partner became pregnant again, and he was feeling for the first time in many years quite positive about his future. Things took a nosedive, and it appears there was a family dispute in which social services became involved."
Atherton's counsel said that this had led to his two-year-old daughter being "removed from the family home", while the couple were told not to have contact with one another. Mr Rowan added: "He felt drugs and alcohol was an easier way of dealing with it at the time.
"In his own words, he feels absolutely gutted that he reverted to the old Anthony Atherton - someone who commits offence to fund a drug addiction. He cannot remember this incident at all.
"He accepts he was under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time. I can report Mr Atherton is doing very well in custody - he is sober, he is not using drugs or alcohol."
Atherton missed birth of his second child due to being in custody and has not yet met the baby, but is due to do so for first time next week. Mr Rowan said: "He is motivated.
"It is up to him now. He has shown he can do it and lead a productive and positive life."
Atherton, appearing via video link to HMP Berwyn, admitted burglary and was handed a further 12 months. This sentence will be serve consecutively to his current prison term, while he was also told to pay a victim surcharge.
Sentencing, Judge Louise Brandon said: "You have an appalling record for like offences. I understand you had been doing well on licence until a family dispute led to you falling back into old ways, using drugs and alcohol to cope - you turned your back on the progress you had previously made."
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