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Burglar walks free after targeting charity’s office
The Journal
|July 26, 2025
A BURGLAR who took part in a raid on a cancer charity in which almost £65,000 of damage was caused has walked free from court.
The break-in happened on June 13 last year at the Fighting All Cancers Together (FACT) building in Wrekenton, Gateshead.
The court heard it is a centre which provides support groups, food services and other support services for victims of cancer and their friends and family.
There had recently been a £500,000 renovation of the building when Geoffrey Bell and Paul Nicholson broke in and left a trail of destruction.
Nicholson, who admitted burglary and a series of other offences, was jailed for more than five years at an earlier court hearing.
Now Bell, 36, of Coach Lane, Hazlerigg, Newcastle, has been given a suspended prison sentence for his part in the break-in, which affected hundreds of cancer sufferers and their families.
CCTV showed Nicholson was first to gain entry, using a piece of metal to break a window which he then climbed through.
This story is from the July 26, 2025 edition of The Journal.
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