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Convicted burglar who threatened elderly neighbour with hammer gets prison warning

Brenda Ritchie had threatened to do jail time for the elderly man after entering his home armed with a hammer

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A Co Down woman who was armed when she twice broke into the home of an elderly neighbour has been warned that she faces an 18-month prison sentence if she re-offends in the next year.

Brenda Ritchie had threatened to do jail time for the elderly man after entering his home armed with a hammer as he waited in his bed for a carer to arrive, a court previously heard.

Ritchie (51) was due to be sentenced at Newtownards’ Magistrates Court today, but District Judge Mark Hamill deferred passing sentence until August 7 next year.

He told Ritchie, who appeared via video-link from Hydebank women’s prison, that he wanted an updated probation report at that time.

The judge warned her that if there were further offences in the next year, or if there was any interaction with her neighbour, that will be a breach of the deferral.

Mr Hamill told Ritchie she would get nine months for each of her two offences but with an order that the sentences are served consecutively.

At an earlier hearing, Ritchie, from Rectory Way in Kircubbin, entered a guilty plea to burglary and assault arising from an incident on April 16 this year when she “entered as a trespasser” a property on Parsonage Road “with intent to do unlawful damage”.

A prosecuting lawyer had outlined how the vulnerable victim was in his bed at around 9pm, waiting for his carer to arrive when Ritchie sauntered in through the unlocked door, waving a hammer above her head and shouting at the man.

“She sat on the edge of his bed, holding the hammer,” said the prosecutor, adding that Ritchie told the victim, “I’ll do jail time for you.”

Although the man feared he was going to be struck, Ritchie left without striking him but she did damage his car when she left the property.

The prosecutor said the assault came from the neighbour’s apprehension that he would be struck, although she conceded that “a hammer was not recovered” during the police investigation.

Arrested and interviewed, Ritchie made full admissions to what she had done and that she knew there was a restraining order against her but denied having a hammer.

That restraining order, along with a nine-month prison sentence, suspended for three years, had been imposed five weeks before the incident by the same judge at the same court.

Mr Hamill reminded himself that in the previous incident, Ritchie had burgled the man’s home but on that occasion, she had been armed with seven swords “each one as long as your arm”, including at least one that was four feet long.