Crook driven round bend

A would-be thief became trapped in a chimney for seven hours while trying to break into a pub, a court heard. David Gardner, 28, of Newbiggin Hall Estate, Newcastle, had to be rescued by firefighters. Gardner, who is 6ft tall, had crawled into the 18-inch wide shaft armed with screwdrivers, pliers and a hammer, believing it would lead him straight to the loot. He managed to wriggle down 12ft of aluminium piping before getting stuck in a bend. Greengrocer Thomas Wrightson heard noises when he arrived at the Twin Farms pub in Newcastle to deliver fruit and veg early in the morning on 28 March. He traced muffled pleas for help to a ventilation shaft and called out to ask what had happened. Gardner replied he had got stuck trying to rescue a cat. The emergency services were called to the scene and it took four fire appliances and a specialist rescue appliance to rescue him. Gardner made a full admission when quizzed by police. Peter Docherty, defending, said: "I don't think he thought this thing out at all. This was an unsophisticated burglary which was bound to fail." Newcastle magistrates adjourned sentencing until 2 June for the preparation of reports after Gardner pleaded guilty to burglary. Host nabs pub bandits Licensee Mike Fernandez sprang into action when bungling burglars walked past his pub just hours after raiding it for £250 worth of spirits. The five men were turned away from Churchills, in Chatham, Kent, last week and went straight down to its basement nightclub, which was closed. They made off with a number of bottles of spirits straight under the nose of CCTV cameras, at one point looking up and acknowledging the cameras. Fernandez alerted the police, who picked up one of the burglars with some of the loot. He was later alerted by a customer, who had witnessed the theft, that the burglars had returned. Fernandez said: "A witness saw them walking down the road. I went with a member of staff and we grabbed four of them." The police were again called and apprehended four suspects. Crime bus' is launched A "crime bus" is being launched in Leicester as part of crackdown on increasing late-night violence in the city. It is one of a series of new measures unveiled by police in response to a 5% increase in assaults in April, compared to the same month last year. Officers said the rise in violence was draining their resources, and a growing bar culture in the city was partly to blame. Police hope the bus, which will be staffed by officers and St John Ambulance, will provide a safe refuge for pub-goers and clubbers in danger. As well as the bus, which will be introduced in the next few months, the police aim to increase weekend patrols in the city, extend a street drinking ban and organise a rapid response team to deal with assaults. Police say Churchgate and Granby Street are examples of troublespots. Rugby move hailed a hit A crackdown on under-age drinking in Rugby, Warwickshire, has been judged a success. The initiative, run by police and council workers, began last October when a Validate proof-of-age photo identity scheme was launched. A team of officers who carried out a surprise inspection of pubs and clubs in the town last weekend found no under-age drinkers. In a similar operation last year, six under age consumers were illegally served age-restricted products including alcohol. Officers have also visited pub landlords and retailers to ensure they ask youngsters for ID before serving them. The police plan to continue carrying out spot checks of pubs, bars and shops. Pub Watch in re-launch Padiham Pub Watch in Lancashire is being re-launched, with almost all the town's pubs taking part. Improvements include community radios and better CCTV links, as well as more regular meetings between licensees and the police.