A decorated ex-Royal Marine whose career was ended when he was shot in Northern Ireland was jailed for 18 months yesterday for burglary. Timothy Killick (36) was hit in the neck by a round which ricocheted after it killed a nearby colleague while they were serving with 42 Commando, Exeter Crown Court heard. Killick received a bravery award for his service in Northern Ireland, and an earlier award for helping rescue fellow Marines during the Falklands war, said defence counsel, Mr Gavin Collett.
Back in civilian life he found himself under financial pressure and turned to crime, said counsel.
Killick, of St Peter's Avenue, Shelley, Ongar, Essex, pleaded guilty to four charges of burgling churches, and asked for burglaries at two other churches in Devon and Cornwall to be considered. He also pleaded guilty to two other burglaries in Norfolk.