AN 'EVIL' thief who preyed on the elderly in their own homes to fund his drug habit had his potentially lifelong sentence backed by top judges.

Sean Vincent Lewis, 29, was jailed indefinitely for public protection (IPP) at Burnley Crown Court in July last year after admitting robbery and two counts of burglary.

He also asked the judge to 'take into consideration' seven similar distraction' burglaries.

The IPP sentence is almost identical to a life term and means Lewis will not be freed until he can convince the Parole Board the danger he poses to society is passed.

Judge Peter Beaumont, who rejected Lewis's challenge to the open-ended sentence at London's Criminal Appeal Court, said he clearly crossed the 'danger threshold'.

The judge focused on two of Lewis' burglaries, in which he targeted a 73-year-old man and an 80-year-old woman, branding his crimes 'mean and despicable'.

The 73-year-old, who uses a wheelchair, having lost the use of one leg, had a wallet containing £140 grabbed from his living room after Lewis sneaked into his home on February 22 last year, entering through the unlocked front door.

On March 2 last year, the elderly woman was at home when Lewis tricked his way into her home, claiming that he wanted to help her deter intruders.

Once inside, he grabbed her around the throat by her cardigan and threw her onto her sofa, demanding cash.

When the courageous pensioner refused to comply, he swore at her, before grabbing her purse and escaping.

The pensioner - who had recently undergone a hip replacement - later told officers that she had never been so frightened.

Judge Beaumont, sitting with Lord Justice Pitchford and Mr Justice Owen in London's Appeal Court, said Lewis' crimes were motivated by his consuming drug addiction, having started using heroin at the age of 15.

His 'stock-in-trade' involved targeting 'elderly and vulnerable people', said the judge, and he clearly posed a high risk to the public.

Lawyers for Lewis, of Nelson, claimed the tough IPP sentence failed to reflect the fact that 'no real physical injury' was caused to his victims.

Nor was there any evidence of 'serious psychological harm', they argued.

But Judge Beaumont backed the sentencing judge's conclusion that Lewis is a dangerous offender who posed a 'significant risk of causing serious harm' to the public.

The original sentencing judge said Lewis did 'evil to good people'