Sutton burglar found hiding in garden shed is jailed

Cyprian Strama, a prolific thief from Sutton, broke into the back garden of home on Martin Way, South Morden, at around 1am on May 12. 

Prosecutor Helen Owen said when the family were woken by rummaging from their garden the dad went to investigate. 

“He opened the door to his garden shed and saw the defendant inside. He shouted at him ‘what are you doing in my shed’ then quickly closed it with the idea of detaining him until police arrived. However, the defendant had other plans,” Ms Owen said. 

“As the victim pressed himself against the shed door to keep it closed the defendant repeatedly kicked against the door. The force of those kicks sent the victim flying to ground, causing a cut to his arm.” 

The 25-year-old burglar then hid in the family's garage until the dad and his son found him again, at which point Strama pleaded with them not to call the police before fleeing the scene. 

Cyprian Strama, an out of work carpenter, claimed he resorted to burglary to fund his addiction to alcohol and recreational drugs (Image: Met Police) Luckily, Strama left behind a backpack containing bail papers confirming his name and also that he was currently on bail for two other burglaries. 

One of these burglaries took place at a charity shop in Sutton in September 2023, where he smashed the door down with a fire extinguisher then stole various items. 

His was identified as his fingerprints were later found on the fire extinguisher. 

The second burglary took place at an unoccupied house in Sutton in April this year, where he forced entry then carried out an “untidy search” for goods. 

Strama, who has previous convictions for burglaries, pleaded guilty to three counts of burglary and one count of assault. 

He appeared at Croydon Crown Court for sentencing on November 20.

The court was told Strama was an out-of-work carpenter who had been sofa surfing. 

He claimed he resorted to burglaries due to his lack of income and addiction to alcohol and recreational drugs. 

But Judge Tom Nicholson-Pratt said: “Your explanation for these burglaries doesn’t carry much weight for me. The fact that you were out of work doesn’t entitle you to drink, take drugs and break into people’s properties.” 

He sentenced Strama to one year and eight months for these burglaries. 

He also activated 18 months of a suspended sentence Strama was previously given for other home burglaries. 

This resulted in a total of three years and two months in custody. 

Strama will serve half of the sentence in prison before being released on licence.