GPS Tag Evidence Nails Burglar Who Targeted Elderly Victims
£20,000 Stolen from 90-Year-Old in Borough Green
Ambrose Treeby, out on licence from prison and fitted with a GPS tag, was caught red-handed stealing from two vulnerable pensioners. In November 2022, a woman in her 90s near Wrotham Road, Borough Green, discovered £20,000 had vanished from her bank account. A cheque was fraudulently cashed at a Tonbridge branch and the money funnelled into Treeby’s account.
The victim didn’t know Treeby and reported the crime. Investigators found that once the cheque cleared, Treeby made several large cash withdrawals swiftly.
Burglar Caught Red-Handed on Loose Road
On 23 January 2023, Treeby struck again. He knocked on a woman’s door near Loose Road, maidstone/" title="Maidstone" data-wpil-keyword-link="linked">Maidstone. The pensioner, in her 70s, had never met him before. Treeby asked to change a £5 note, then followed her inside. When she went to check her purse, he requested to use her bathroom. Moments later, she found him walking away from her handbag, and £150 was missing.
GPS Tag Puts Treeby at Crime Scenes
Police arrested Treeby two days later. Crucial data from his GPS prison tag placed him at both victims’ homes when the crimes occurred. The GPS also tracked him near the Tonbridge bank when the fraudulent cheque was cashed.
The Maidstone pensioner identified him in a police ID parade. Treeby, 39, from Queen Street, Paddock Wood, admitted guilt at Maidstone Crown Court. On 4 April, he was sentenced to three years and four months behind bars for two burglaries and cashing a stolen cheque.
Detective Slams Treeby’s Ruthlessness
Detective Constable Josh Littley said: “Treeby is a callous villain who has stolen cash from elderly victims relying on the trusting nature of one of them to gain access to her home.
“He is a prolific criminal as shown by the way he continued committing offences whilst wearing a GPS tag. This allowed us to gather irrefutable evidence that led to his conviction. The vulnerable in our community will certainly be safer while he is in prison.”
