THREE burglars who carried out a series of break-ins with tools and disguises have been jailed.

The string of crimes was described by a judge as a “campaign of well-planned and well-equipped commercial burglaries” that had “all the hallmarks of professional offending”.

David Talbot, aged 38, of Loxham Street, Moses Gate, Jason Wolstenholme, aged 45, of Harpford Drive, Breightmet, and Shaun Eldred, aged 32, of no fixed address, but formerly of Rogerstead, Deane, were jailed at Bolton Crown Court yesterday.

All had admitted conspiracy to burgle and Talbot also admitted going equipped to burgle and Eldred a breach of a conditional discharge.

The court heard that Tesco in Crossley Street, Little Lever, was burgled on June 28 last year when criminals cut through a wire fence, forced up the shutters on a rear door and entered the store.

They made off with a haul worth £4,000 comprising printer ink packs, car chargers and batteries.

Men in balaclavas broke into Turks Road Service Station in Turks Road, Radcliffe, at around 3.45am on July 23 last year.

Prosecutor Huw Edwards said two offenders forced up shutters with the crowbar and one of them was carrying bolt cutters and the other a kind of sack with the opening held open with a hoop. Cigarettes worth £1,600 were taken.

The same filling station was targeted by three men on August 1 at 2.50am when £2,000 of cigarettes were taken and the home-made swag bag was brought along again for the “speedy loading of goods stolen”.

Thieves tried to burgle a Spar store in Radcliffe on August 9 at 1.50am but could not wrench up the shutters and left.

The following day two of the defendants were arrested conducting reconnaissance of the Mace Stores shop in Brandlesholme Road, Greenmount, formerly known as Greenmount News, and the third handed himself into police.

Officers recovered a pair of yellow bolt cutters with red handles, a crow bar and a duvet cover with a hoop inserted into the neck.

Judge Timothy Stead said: “It was a significant conspiracy to commit a burglary of commercial premises.

“It was a campaign of well-planned and well-equipped commercial burglaries interrupted as they were in different circumstances.”

Eldred admitted being part of four of the enterprises, Talbot in three and Wolstenholme in two, insisting he was just a lookout in the last offence.

Andrew Costello, for Eldred, said his client was a former solar panel fitter with sons aged 14 and eight who had turned to heroin when on one bank holiday weekend he ran out of painkillers for arthritis caused by an old shattered heel injury he sustained as a labourer years ago.

Mr Costello said: “He has, in his own words, reached rock bottom. His remorse is heartfelt.”

Mark Friend, for Talbot, said his client had relapsed and begun using heroin again in July last year after two-and-a-half years of abstinence and now felt “shame and regret”.

Daniel Prowse, for Wolstenholme, said his client was an experienced floor fitter who had struggle with a heroin addiction his whole adult life and hoped on his release from prison to become a volunteer coach with youth football project Street Soccer.

Judge Stead jailed Eldred for two years and eight months and Talbot and Wolstenholme both for two-and-a-half years.