Burglar apologises to victims from cell

A burglar awaiting sentence spent his time in prison by writing letters of apology to his victims, Christchurch District Court was told today.

James Barry Thomas's lawyer Elizabeth Bulger handed 18 letters to crown prosecutor Barnaby Hawes to be passed on to the victims.

She said that Thomas, a former white supremacist who has had to be kept in segregation while in jail on remand, spent 10 hours writing the letters.

He was sentenced today to four years in prison for eight burglaries, seven thefts, four charges of dishonestly using documents, two charges of receiving stolen property, possession of cannabis and breach of prison release conditions.

The court was told that had been stealing for years to finance his drug habit and had served six jail terms since 2002.

"It seems imprisonment is not much of a deterrent for you," Judge Colin Doherty told Thomas.

Miss Bulger said Thomas had displayed obvious remorse by writing the individual letters.

"If that is 10 hours he has spent thinking about the impact on his victims and people associated with the victims, then it is 10 hours well spent."

She said he now wanted to put his criminal lifestyle behind him. He wanted to get through his jail term and he had support in the community for his release.

But Judge Doherty told Thomas: "I suspect you need to beat your drug demons before you beat your offending demons."

He reduced Thomas's jail term for his guilty pleas, his remorse, and for the letters he had written.

- NZPA