TWO prolific Bromsgrove burglars, who often preyed on the elderly and vulnerable, have been put behind bars.

Adrian Sharp, aged 38, and 43-year-old Martin Bradley, both from the Rock Hill area, were sentenced to seven and five years respectively after pleading guilty, at Hereford Crown Court, to 11 distraction burglaries.

Police in Bromsgrove welcomed the lengthy sentences after the pair admitted carrying out seven burglaries together. The raids mainly took place at remote rural locations and involved the elderly.

Sharp also confessed to committing a further four offences on his own in north and south Worcestershire over a five-month period from October 2003 to February 2004.

The case follows an intensive investigation by both detectives and uniformed officers into a spate of incidents in which men tricked their way into people's homes.

After investigations into 123 burglaries across the county, Sharp and Bradley faced a total of 56 charges.

Detective Inspector Graham Smith, of Worcestershire CID, said: "Throughout, these men continued to display a total disregard for the people they targeted, the majority of whom were elderly, vulnerable - or both. They used a number of methods to cold-heartedly distract occupants and steal from them.

"Police in north and south Worcestershire can rightly be proud of what they have achieved in bringing about the apprehension and imprisonment of what were the county's most prolific burglars."

Sharp and Bradley have also been banned from going to 39 private addresses across the county under the criminal anti-social behaviour order (CRASBO) process.

This is believed to be the highest number of addresses ever specified under the order and will offer protection to witnesses and prevent repeat offences.