A BURGLAR who claimed he had a kind of “addiction to the buzz” of offending has been jailed for more than three years.

Roy Evans, 37, was jailed for breaking into four Oxford language colleges in one night.

At Oxford Crown Court on Monday, Evans admitted five counts of burglary at four colleges and a flat and one count of damaging property.

Naomi Perry, prosecuting, said he first broke into Embassy English, in Broad Street, between 11.30pm on June 26 and 12.26am on June 27.

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He got in via the roof of the rear of Jesus College and Boswells department store, where he cut netting and broke a lock, which resulted in the charge of damaging property.

He stole £20 and caused £800 of damage, including to metal doors, and then broke into Eckersley Oxford, Friars Entry, through a fire escape, she said.

He broke into the safe to steal three £100 digital cameras, stamps worth £90 and £260 cash and then broke into the principal’s flat above.

Here £300 cash, $50 and a Barclaycard were taken, before Evans got into Oxford Hill English School, in New Road, via an insecure window after smashing another with a fire extinguisher. Nothing was taken.

He forced his way into Oxford Tutorial College, in King Edward Street. Nothing was taken but a porter saw him and noted his appearance.

A fingerprint was found on an envelope at the first break-in and police identified him from CCTV from “various locations”, said Ms Perry.

The court heard he was sentenced last August for breaking into Whittard of Chelsea, in Oxford Street, London, and three language colleges in the area.

He also received a six-month suspended sentence for nine more non-domestic burglaries at North West London Magistrates’ Court last October.

Gareth James, defending, said Evans did not intend to break into the Eckersley flat but “having realised that, he continued and took money”.

Evans appeared to have “some addiction to the buzz of offending behaviour” that he wanted to address, he said.

As it was his third domestic break-in since 1999, he was jailed for three years and nine months under a “three strikes” rule.

Courts must impose a sentence of at least three years for a third domestic burglary under section 111 of the Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000.

Recorder Nicholas Goodwin noted Evans had 23 previous convictions for 39 offences including 15 burglaries and sentenced him to three years for the Oxford flat burglary and 12 months for each college break-in, to run concurrently.

He said of the “three strikes” rule: “The court must impose a minimum of a three year sentence unless it considers it unjust to do so. I don’t consider it unjust in your case, given offending on that day and your history.”

There was no penalty for the damage charge and Evans got nine months for breaking the terms of the 2013 suspended sentences.