A PROFESSIONAL criminal who has spent 17 of the last 20 years behind bars has been handed another prison sentence after he robbed a house in Slough last year.

Tommy Gilheany, who has also been known as Tommy Puhlhoffer, got away with a Gucci watch and a wedding ring but was caught when a police dog bit him following a car chase in Kingston three weeks later.

Dubbed a modern-day Oliver Twist for beginning a life of crime at the tender age of eight years old, Gilheany has been a frequent headline maker over the past decade for his criminal exploits.

In November 2020, five months after the Slough robbery, Gilheany hit the headlines again when doctors found a mobile phone up his anus after he was mowed down by a car in a hit-and-run.

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This incident caused Gilheany “life-changing injuries” and it was because of this that Her Honour Judge Emma Nott handed the 33-year-old a more “lenient sentence” for the robbery and Kingston police chase.

'Frightening'

Reading Crown Court heard how Gilheany broke into the Slough house he burgled at 4am on June 3, 2020.

The owner of the house and her children were sleeping when she came downstairs for work and noticed activity on her Ring doorbell camera.

After panicking and running back upstairs, she saw a male rifling through her son’s Mercedes from the window and called the police.

Gilheany had gone by the time officers arrived but took with him a Gucci watch and wedding ring.

The woman said she has had multiple sleepless nights following the incident, which she described as “frightening.”

Three weeks later at 8pm on June 30, Gilheany was a passenger in a car that police identified as being involved in a burglary.

'Exceptionally stupid'

A pursuit between officers and Gilheany’s car ensued from Kingston to Wimbledon.

The 33-year-old started throwing objects at the police car including a screwdriver, tin cans and beer bottles, prosecutor Miles Trigg told the court.

Gilheany was then seen brandishing a stanley knife and made cut throat gestures at police during the chase.

The fleeing vehicle sped up to 90mph in a 50mph zone.

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Gilheany eventually jumped out from the car in Wimbledon and dashed over fences into residents’ gardens in a bid to evade police.

After half an hour he was found camping out underneath a barbecue in a garden by a police dog who bit him.

One of the police officers involved in the chase said: “The whole incident was shocking and worrying.”

Defending, Edward Gordon-Baker said Gilheany acknowledged he acted in a manner that was “exceptionally stupid.”

HIV threats

The barrister told the court Gilheany had previous convictions for burglaries when he was just ten years old, earning him the 'Oliver Twist' nickname.

The court heard how following the November 2020 hit-and-run he was a victim of, Gilheany racially abused and assaulted emergency workers.

A report from Metro revealed Gilheany was being treated for his injuries when doctors found the phone up his backside.

King’s College Hospital contacted police and Gilheany started yelling racist abuse at the Asian officers who came to investigate.

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The report read: ‘He tried to leave the bed and the defendant said he would kick the officer and would show him what would happen if someone touched him.’

“Puhlhoffer [Gilheany] scratched and dug his teeth into the officer’s left hand twice and threatened to pass on the HIV virus.”

In 2009, Gilheany was jailed for seven years after a series of strangulation robberies on four wealthy women in London, according to Ham&High.

Because of these offences, Gilheany has spent almost 17 of the last 20 years behind bars.

“He had a family and peer group in which crime was normalised”, Gordon-Baker said explaining his criminal history.

But the barrister also told the court his client wanted to “reform” as he had a baby boy he has not yet been able to hold because he is still in custody.

'Appalling behaviour'

Sentencing, Her Honour Judge Nott said Gilheany had an “appalling [criminal] record”.

The judge acknowledged the defendant had a “horrific” childhood with “little family support” which meant that “up to now” he had been a “pro-criminal”.

Because the Slough robbery was Gilheany’s third burglary conviction, Judge Nott had the power to impose a longer sentence on the 33-year-old, but opted for a more “lenient” term as the defendant had been involved in “two very significant life events” since his offending in June 2020.

“Two months after your appalling behaviour towards he chasing police officers you were the victim of an attempted murder”, Judge Nott said.

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“You suffered really serious harm and it would appear somebody had it in for you and drove at you, causing life-changing injuries.

“It was in the context of that night you then returned to court and received the custodial sentence you are currently serving because of your behaviour towards emergency workers that night.”

She continued: “You are a different person because you are a father for the first time.

“You need to be the role model that you never had in your own life.

“Please carry on the work you have been doing in prison and when you come out try and turn your life around.”

Judge Nott handed Gilheany, of Lowdham, a 12-month prison sentence to be served concurrently with his current sentence, meaning he will be released from prison in April 2022.

Gilheany thanked the judge as he was sent down following his sentencing at Reading Crown Court on Tuesday, October 19.