A prisoner from the Bradford district has died following a cell fire at HMP Risley, Warrington.
Inmate Kevin Delahunty, 40, of Shipley, suffered fatal injuries on March 29 after a blaze broke out at the category C prison on Warrington Road.
In a statement, the Ministry of Justice said: “HMP Risley prisoner Kevin Delahunty died on March 29, 2018.
“As with all deaths in custody, there will be an independent investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.
“Our sincere condolences are with Mr Delahunty’s family and friends at this difficult time.”
In a court report published in the Telegraph & Argus, it was revealed how Delahunty was jailed for five years for burglary after raiding the house of a school teacher.
The head of faculties left her property in Bradford on March 10, 2016, to travel to work and came back after dark to find high-value electrical items, two jewellery boxes and power tools had been stolen.
Among Delahunty's haul was a gold ring given to the teacher by her mother for her 21st birthday and a silver brooch bought by her grandparents when she was a child.
Delahunty, who was first convicted of a house burglary in 2001, also stole two television sets, a gold bangle, necklaces and earrings.
He carried his ill-gotten gains in the teacher's own rucksack and holdalls.
Kam Dhesi, who defended Delahunty in court, said the defendant's long standing addiction to class A drugs was behind his offending.
Since leaving jail for the last time, he had sought treatment and found a home but after suffering from mental health problems, he turned to drugs.
During the sentencing at Bradford Crown Court in April 2016, The Recorder of Bradford, Judge Roger Thomas QC told Delahunty: "Your life has been a disaster. “You have misused drugs and committed criminal offences, especially house burglaries.
"When the teacher returned to her home after dark, she feared the intruder was still inside and phoned a neighbour in fear.
"You went through every room, shedding blood. It took her two days to clean up.
"You stole valuable jewellery, including sentimental and personal items that were not recovered."
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