A MAN who stole cash and jewellery during a burglary in Wirral has been jailed for two years.

John Toohey, 23, was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court on Friday, after pleading guilty to an incident in Birkenhead.

On Wednesday, February 24, police received a report of a burglary at an address on Hoylake Road in the town.

Cash and approximately £4,000 worth of jewellery were stolen from the address.

After extensive police enquiries, John Toohey was arrested in connection with the incident in May and later charged.

Toohey, of Oil Street, Liverpool, was arrested as part of Operation Castle, Merseyside Police's dedicated burglary team.

Detective Sergeant Steven Byrom said: "To be a victim of burglary can have a profound effect on the lives of victims, from the shock and unease felt by having somebody invade your home, the inconvenience of losing property, through to the often severe long-term psychological impacts.

"We hope that the sentence not only helps his victims, but also gives Toohey time to reflect on the harm he has caused while serving his sentence.

"Since the launch of Operation Castle in 2018, we have seen offenders sentenced to a total of more than 500 years in prison and seen burglary offences decrease year on year.

"Vital to this progress is information from those people, businesses and communities affected, so keep coming forward and we will take action.

"It's also worth having a look at the different ways you can make your homes unattractive targets for would-be criminals.

"Advice is available on our website for locks, cameras and other measures to bring greater security and peace of mind."

For more information, see: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/cp/crime-prevention/ and for more, follow Merseyside Police's social media accounts @MerseyPolice on Twitter and Merseyside Police on Facebook and your local account.

Always call 999 if a burglary is in progress. You can also pass information to the social media desk @MerPolCC on Twitter, 'Merseyside Police Contact Centre' on Facebook, call 101 or the independent charity @CrimestoppersUK anonymously, on 0800 555 111.