A MELKSHAM family plans to move away after they were burgled while they slept, the court who jailed the local man who robbed them for 10 months, heard.

Ibrahiem Shawish, 23, of Queensway, Melksham, appeared before North West Wiltshire Magistrates last Thursday and pleaded guilty to burglary, taking a vehicle without consent, driving with no insurance and no licence following the thefts on August 27 from Canon Square.

Although the BMW and a stolen iPhone 6 were recovered, other items worth around £2,000, including a Mulberry bag, a pen, a work laptop and designer sunglasses were never found.

Prosecuting, Pauline Lambert told the court: “The husband was in bed while his wife had gone out for a run, and she didn’t see anything out of place.

“When the victim gets up, he noticed a Marks & Spencer bag was not where he left it and he started to search the rest of the house. They thought it was in the BMW and so tried to look for the keys which they were unable to find. He then realises something felt wrong and he saw that the car wasn’t where he left it. The victim then started to look on the Find My iPhone app on a different device: it tracked his phone to Westlands Lane in Whitley.”

The court heard how the victim then met police in Whitley, where they found the phone. The BMW was later found in the car park of the Red Lion in Lacock.

Ms Lambert then told magistrates how on returning home, the victim was approached by Shawish who said he had information regarding the incident but didn’t want police involved. He was subsequently arrested.

In a statement read to the court the wife said: “The whole thing has had a negative impact on my family and I do not feel safe in my own home. It has caused a great deal of anxiety and as a result we want to move away from Wiltshire. We feel paranoid in our own house.”

Shawish told police he had been drinking in the day following a wedding and had taken £20 worth of cocaine. Representing himself in court, he said: “I would just like to say sorry for the pain I have caused the family.”

Shawish was also convicted of burglary in 2012 when he was given a 12-month community order.

Chairman of the bench Richard Mattick said: “We will be sentencing you to six months imprisonment for the burglary and four months for taking the vehicle without consent which will be served consecutively.”

Shawish has also been disqualified for 12 months for having no licence.