A man described in the British press as a "jobless, illiterate Irishman" has been arrested in Britain for a series of robberies at stately manor homes and national landmarks.
Andrew Shannon, 44, of Dublin is accused of travelling to England for a "weekend crime spree" with an accomplice, the two men using GPS locators and wireless communications devices to locate target homes and to communicated with each other during their robberies - almost always conducted while the homes were open for public enjoyment.
Apparently Mr. Shannon considered six homes, including Blenheim Palace, a "soft target," walking away with porcelain, paintings, silver and a walking stick from Belvoir Castle.
He was found out when he was approached by a security man who saw two oil paintings stuffed into Shannon's laptop case.
Police found out that Shannon had pilfered items from Castle Howard, Blenheim, Belvoir and other landmark homes, customarily open to the public to display their historic contents.
Shannon was sentenced to three years "in the nick."
