A schoolboy who turned to burglary has paid the price for it - hair loss.
Bald patches appeared when the 16-year-old became stressed about raids by others in his gang.
They not only raided homes in the Pitsea area, but also trashed them and daubed graffiti with large four-letter words on the walls.
Barrister Mark Halsey, representing the boy burglar, told Basildon Crown Court about his hair falling out. He said the defendant lost hair on the left side of his head mainly through the worry about what happened.
The youngster's mother gave evidence, claiming her son was now under the care of hospital doctors because of the hair loss.
She added: "They are monitoring the loss and believe it is a form of alopecia."
Her son, who wore a baseball cap at court, admitted burglaries at three addresses - Plumleys, Malyons and Stokefelde.
Property included jewellery, cash, mobile phones and a television set. It amounted to more than £7,000 and was sold on to handlers of stolen property
The court heard that the gang bought cannabis and alcohol on money they made from the spate of burglaries.
The boy, who cannot be identified, has named others in the gang. So far only one boy has been referred to a youth court. Not enough evidence was given to prosecute others.
Judge Nicholas Jones gave the boy credit for owning up to his offending, plus help he gave police when arrested.
The judge told him: "You came within a whisker of custody."
He was ordered to work 70 hours' community service, and placed on a two-year community rehabilitation programme.
Published Friday, May 16, 2003
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article