UK burglar abuses 'dumb' victim in apology letter

A convicted British burglar forced to write a letter of apology delivered a barely literate diatribe in which he blamed his "dumb" victim for the crime because the kitchen window was open.

The letter from the unnamed crook, which was not delivered to the victim, was released by West Yorkshire police in the northern English city of Leeds to demonstrate the mindset of the criminals who target people's homes.

The 16-year-old burglar was told to write a letter of apology as part of an Intensive Supervision and Surveillance Programme (ISSP), a non-custodial plan for young offenders.

Instead of apologising for his offence, the teen thief wrote: "I don't no (sic) why I am writing a letter to you! I have been forced to write this letter by ISSP.

"To be honest I'm not bothered or sorry about the fact that I burgled your house. Basicly (sic) it was your own fault anyways (sic). I'm going to run you through the dumb mistakes you made."

The young offender went on to say the victim failed to draw their curtains before they went to sleep and were "thick enough" to leave their downstairs window open.

"But anyways I don't feel sorry for you and Im (sic) not going to show any sympath (sic) or remores (sic)," the teen concluded.

West Yorkshire police Chief Inspector Melanie Jones urged property owners to take more care when securing their homes.

"The contents of the letter are disgusting but it does highlight the cold and dispassionate way burglars select a property to target."