A 21-year-old man was caught carrying out a night-time ram raid in a stolen van, Bradford Crown Court heard.

Police chased and detained Raymond Coleman when they swooped on premises belonging to TMC Electric Motors in Eastwood Street, West Bowling, Bradford.

Coleman, of Raven Terrace, Lower Grange, Bradford, was one of three burglars targeting £300,000 of equipment in a lock-up garage at 1am on May 24 last year.

He pleaded guilty to burglary and aggravated vehicle taking and was sentenced to a 12-month community order with 180 hours of unpaid work and banned from driving for 12 months.

Prosecutor Duncan Ritchie told the court yesterday that the VW box van used in the raid was stolen from a shopkeeper three days’ earlier.

It was reversed through roller shutter doors at the garage and a forklift truck on the premises was used to load three large electrical motors on to it.

Mr Ritchie said the scrap value of the raiders’ planned haul was £50,000 and they did almost £2,000 damage when they attacked the premises.

When police officers arrived at the scene, a man keeping look-out alerted Coleman and a third burglar who were both inside the building. The trio made off on foot and Coleman was arrested trying to scale a high fence.

His two accomplices got away and were never apprehended.

Coleman, who had no previous convictions, made no comment to the police.

His barrister, Ken Green, said he accepted responsibility for the break-in and would take the consequences.

He was on Jobseeker’s Allowance and was supplementing that by loaning out a horse and cart but his horse had died.

Judge Peter Benson told Coleman: “This was a serious and well-planned offence involving a high value of property.”

But it was Coleman’s first conviction and he had pleaded guilty at the first opportunity.

Judge Benson warned Coleman that any breach of the order would be dealt with at the Crown Court.