Former Mayor of a Lancashire, England, village has been jailed for two years after admitting to four guilty charges of burglary of underwear. 59-year-old Ian Stafford, formerly Mayor of the village of Preesall and an unmarried bachelor, was forced to resign as Mayor in 2009 after being arrested for underwear burglary.
The former Mayor's crimes involved entering homes of people whom had entrusted house keys to him, where he was employed as handyman or gardener, and stealing underwear before carrying out sex acts. He would then either steal or replace the underwear, leaving the properties, occasionally stealing some garments in addition.The burglaries took place during the first six months of 2009.
One suspicious female installed a hidden camera inside her bedroom, resulting in a 14-minute DVD of the former mayor walking naked from the waist downwards. That naked DVD was passed on to England Police. Police officers later raided Stafford's residence, finding the underwear, which had been marked with the names of the owners. The underwear is said to have been worth up to £900 (US $1407).
a) for four counts of burglary, that's some expensive underwear per pair.
b) who, as an adult, marks their name in underwear?
The Court trial was held in Preston Crown Court where the underwear victims stated they'd been "embarrassed, disgusted and shocked" by the "sexual kicks" which the Mayor had been getting from their private undergarments. During a previous Police interview, Mayor Stafford commented at how he felt "deeply ashamed at the whole scenario because I have hurt people who have been excellent friends - I could not wish for better. I wish I had said something to someone earlier. I am not proud of any of this, I am sickened. I wish I could turn the clock back." Yeah.
Inside the Court, Judge Heather Lloyd said to the Mayor: "Your private desires or fantasies, which should only be your concern, became public when you decided to do what you did in the homes of those who trusted you. To masturbate into a woman's underwear and place it back in the drawer [sic], repeatedly, as seen in the DVD, as you have done in other homes is bluntly revolting and the impact on your victims is high."
The Judge sentenced Stafford to two years in prison with additional recommendation for psychological therapy. News sources reported the therapy recommendation to be a decision which was supported by Stafford's fourth victim; it is unclear as to why victims 1-3 did no support the Judge's recommendation.