A thug who stole money from a 91-year-old after breaking into his home has been jailed.

Clifford Vincent targeted the pensioner at his home in Hartley, Cranbrook, on June 7, 2022.

After breaking into his house and forcing his way inside, Vincent told the victim, who had mobility issues and required daily help from carers, that he knew him and asked how he was.

Following a search of the property, including places such as the man's bedroom, he then left having stolen around £15 which had been sitting on a living room mantelpiece.

Officers arrested Vincent around a month later while he was driving in Sevenoaks following an investigation.

During a police interview, he accepted he had entered the victim’s address but claimed he had been knocking on the doors of several homes to inquire about a van parked nearby for sale.

When quizzed about entering the victim's bedroom, Vincent claimed he was asking whether the man needed help with anything.

However, the 48-year-old, of Glebe Close, Smarden, was charged with burglary and later pleaded not guilty at Maidstone Crown Court.

Yet Vincent was convicted unanimously by a jury following his trial.

He was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment earlier today (January 19).

DC Josh Littley, of the Kent Crime Squad, said: "Vincent deliberately preyed on an elderly man knowing he was vulnerable and who he assumed would be an easy target.

"Crimes such as these can have a devastating impact on victims' confidence and ability to trust, and criminals like Vincent simply don't care about the profound distress their actions cause.

"Had we not been able to identify him early on in our investigation, there is little doubt he would have sought to inflict further misery and despair upon other victims."