Surrey men jailed over two month crime spree

Two burglars have been jailed after taking part in a two-month crime spree across the southeast last year. Terence O’Reilly, 23, and James Carthy, 33, carried out nine burglaries, three attempted burglaries and a vehicle theft across four counties (Surrey, Hampshire, Kent, and Sussex) between August and October 2024.

O’Reilly was also found guilty of a further nine offences – six burglaries, two attempted burglaries, and a further vehicle theft – across three counties (Hampshire, Sussex, and Berkshire).

The burglars used Covid-style surgical face masks to conceal their identities. O’Reilly would often be the one to approach the house first, wearing a cap and a mask, and knock or ring the doorbell to check if anyone was inside. Once satisfied the house was empty, he and Carthy would break in through rear doors and windows. They were targeting safes, along with loose cash and jewellery, and carried out their crimes in broad daylight as well as under cover of darkness.

Surrey Police say it was "car vanity" that led them to the offenders: "A distinctive modified silver Audi S3 with its front grille and badge painted black was seen in numerous CCTV clips at or close to the scenes of the offences, including at the scene of a burglary in Billingshurst in September 2024, where a rare Mercedes E43 AMG was stolen. The Mercedes was recovered several weeks later stuck in a ford in Bordon – likely dumped after the driver misjudged the level of the water. A sledgehammer was found inside.

"Their offending spree came to an end on the evening of 2 October 2024, after the silver Audi made off from police in Hascombe, the driver and passenger discarding two designer handbags (Louis Vuitton and Chanel) and a dirty pillowcase containing jewellery out of the window before decamping a few minutes later."

Police officers swarmed the area and the two were cornered. O’Reilly was held on a hillside by a police dog until officers arrived to arrest him, while Carthy was found hiding under a nearby bridge in the river.

Carthy and O’Reilly discarded some of their clothing and shoes as they fled from police, and had doused the inside of the Audi with bleach in an attempt to cover their tracks. Inside the vehicle, officers recovered two baseball caps, a crowbar, a chisel, a pickaxe, and two surgical-style face masks.

On Monday, 21 July at Guildford Crown Court, they were sentenced as follows:

Terence O’Reilly, (14/12/2001), of Cranleigh, was sentenced to eight years imprisonment for burglary, conspiracy to commit burglary, and theft of motor vehicle.

Pictured above: Terence O'Reilly

James Carthy, (30/12/1991), of Dunsfold, was sentenced to six years imprisonment for burglary, conspiracy to commit burglary, and theft of motor vehicle.

O’Reilly and Carthy are also both subject to a Serious Crime Prevention Order (SCPO), a court order designed to stop persons from engaging in further serious criminal activity by setting restrictions on their behaviour and outlining conditions they need to adhere to.

Investigating officer DC McBain said, “This was a challenging case of organised criminality spanning the Southeast. Carthy and O’Reilly showed no remorse or regard for the effects of their crimes and locking them up will prevent many more burglaries. I would like to thank everyone who contributed to this investigation.” Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.