A 42-year-old man has been jailed for thefts from motor vehicles.

Murray Bierman, of Ruthin Close, Luton, admitted three thefts from motor vehicles in St Albans and Harpenden, a fraud by false representation and five breaches of his community protection notice at Hatfield Remand Court yesterday (June 6).

Bierman was sentenced to 40 weeks' imprisonment and also ordered to pay fines and costs to the court.

In one of the thefts, a laptop was stolen from a unlocked vehicle in Park Street, St Albans, between May 30 and May 31. The laptop has been returned to the victim.

In another, a bank card was stolen from another unlocked vehicle parked in address in Station Road, Harpenden, between April 24 and April 25. The card was subsequently used at the Shell garage, Sainsbury’s, Argos and Domino's in Luton. Bierman was captured on CCTV using the card.

He also stole a mobile phone was stolen from an unlocked car parked in Park Hill in Harpenden. The mobile has been returned to the victim.

Detective Sergeant Tom Evans said: “Bierman is well known to us and we suspected he was responsible for the vehicle thefts in St Albans and Harpenden, so we are very pleased he received a custodial sentence.

"Bierman was only interested in stealing items from insecure cars as he didn’t want to attract any unnecessary attention. However, fortunately in one of the offences, doorbell camera footage captured him stealing a mobile phone from a Golf in Harpenden.”

He said: “I would strongly encourage residents to remove all valuables and lock your vehicles. I’d also consider investing in doorbell and security cameras, which often act as deterrents.”