A burglar who ruined Christmas for a series of small businesses was allowed to choose to stay out of prison after vowing to go straight.
Paul Kenny raided and ransacked shops, cafes and bakeries in Newcastle in a spate of offences before, after and on Christmas Day, causing loss and damage of around £6,000.
Kenny, who has 112 previous convictions, including 35 for commercial burglaries, was snared after police recognised his tattoo. But despite admitting six burglaries and asking for a further seven to be taken into consideration, he has been given a suspended prison sentence after promising that he wants to turn his life around.
