A 23-YEAR-old seasoned Thurrock-based burglar – who also has a conviction for indecent exposure on his record – is behind bars after a string of thefts from rail station coffee shops across the region in November and December last year.

Joshua Wiggins from Buckles Lane, South Ockendon, and who previously loved at Schoolfield Way, Grays, was jailed for two years and eight months.

After he admitted nine counts of burglary, two attempts to enter buildings as a trespasser and was jailed at Basildon Crown Court this week.

The court heard he had a string of previous conviction relating to more than 100 crimes and has appeared in the dock 56 times!

Of his latest batch of robberies, to which he pleaded guilty, all but two happened at coffee shops at train stations, including Purfleet which he attempted to break into on 29 November last year.

His raids netted him thousands of pounds worth of cigarettes and cash and he also caused significant damage to the premises he robbed.

In May 2019 Wiggins, then 21 was jailed for a month for a string of crimes across Thurrock including a raid on Stanford-le-Hope's High Street Co-op and stealing clothes from the House of Fraser.