THE grandparents of a teenage burglar who stole £14,000 worth of precious valuables from them have declared: He should have been jailed.

Tearful Sean Collings, 18, was told by a crown court judge that his behaviour towards grandparents Harry and Ruth Robinson had been ‘despicable.’ But Recorder Paul Garlick QC said he felt able to suspend sentence on Collings because he had now gone to live with his supportive father in the Ribble Valley and had found a job.

Speaking after the hearing Mr Robinson, 61, and his wife, who attended court, said they were ‘very disappointed” he was not jailed.

They said they now wanted to warn others about their grandson.

Mr Robinson said: “I want to say ‘This is Sean Collings: Beware’. He’s not the Sean we thought we knew.

“If he was remorseful he could have admitted it when he was first arrested and we could have stood a chance of getting some of our stuff back.”

They said every shred of trust he and his wife had in their grandson had gone.

Mrs Robinson, of South Cerney, Gloucestershire, a teacher said: “You don’t ever dream your grandson would do this. It’s been a nightmare. I’m terribly hurt.”

Among the items taken was Mr Robinson’s grandmother’s engagement ring and a ring wife Ruth had given to him on their engagement.

Also taken was a watch awarded to his father on his retirement. Mr Robinson’s coin collection, amassed over 30 years, was also stolen, including a 1998 sovereign his father gave him for his 50th birthday – the day of his death.

Collings, formerly of Meadow Road, Swindon, but now of Pendleton Road, Wiswell, had admitted burgling his grandparents home on April 29.

Recorder Garlick sentenced him to 12 months in a young offenders institute suspended for two years and ordered him to do 240 hours of unpaid community work. He also ordered him to pay £7,200 compen-sation to his grandparents at the rate of £200 a month for the next three years.

The recorder said Collings had gone into their home at least three times to take their property. He said: “The thefts involved taking items of high value but even higher sentim-ental value from your own family.

“You selected items which you knew perfectly well you could sell.

“To do it once was serious but to do it repeatedly, knowing you were stealing from your own family, was mean spirited and despicable.”

Recorder Garlick said he had no doubt the repetitive and calculated nature of the offences justified an immediate custodial sentence.

“I can find very little from what I have heard which could justify suspending sentence except one thing and that is the support your father is now giving you and the fact you have got a job,” he added.

As Collings sobbed in the dock the recorder said: “I can see from your demeanour that you are at least at this very late stage very repentant for what you did. This has caused me with some reluctance to suspend sentence.”

Prosecutor Derek Ryder had told Gloucestershire Crown Court Collings had stolen a spare key to Mr and Mrs Robinson’s house while visiting them in early April.

He told police he had stolen the property because he was out of work and needed money, said Mr Ryder.

Collings said he had sold the property for £1,800 at pawn shops.

Steve Young, defending, said he accepted Collings’ offences were ‘particularly mean’ and that the property was of great sentimental value.

But he submitted that Collings was immature and naive and had no idea of the seriousness of his crimes or of the possible consequences.

“His victims, his grandparents, seem to think he has shown no remorse,” said Mr Young.

“He doesn’t accept that. He has had no contact with the victims or that side of his family or his mother since this happened.

"He is almost ostracised by that part of the family.”