A 20-year-old Manchester man has pleaded guilty to two burglaries and two thefts in Buxton in early 2022.

Christopher Kiely was arrested on Tuesday 26 April after DNA was found at the scene of one of the crimes, that all took place on 8 January.

The first incident took place that morning at the Gregg’s in Spring Gardens, where he stole a bag of cash from the counter. Shortly after he walked into a builders’ merchant and stole a charity box.

He then pinched a newspaper and chocolate bar from the Sainsbury’s in Eagle Parade, before then stealing more cash from a nearby pub.

He was eventually caught after a distinctive walking stick that he was carrying was left at the pub and found to have his DNA on it.

PC Vanessa Barry, the officer who brought Kiely to justice, said: “In a short period of time Kiely managed to steal a significant amount of money but his attempts to evade justice were all for nothing in the end.

“The community may remember that we released an image in relation to this case shortly after it took place. We received a fantastic response to the appeal and the name of a local man was put forward as a potential suspect.

“However, after being interviewed, we were able to discount him as a suspect and I want to be absolutely clear that he is not involved in these incidents in any way.”

Kiely was remanded to prison on Thursday (28 April) after pleading guilty to all four offences at Stockport Magistrates’ Court. He will be sentenced on 18 May.

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