Two men from East Surrey have been jailed after they pleaded guilty to a burglary in Betchworth.  

Multiple pieces of jewellery valued at £400 were stolen from a property in October last year. The jewellery was later recovered by Police in nearby shrubbery after the offenders were disturbed.  

The two men were identified and attended Guildford Crown Court on Monday where they pleaded guilty on the first day of the trial. Tony Hoare from Horley was jailed for a total of three years and five months after pleading guilty to two counts of burglary and one count of criminal damage.  Matthew Wilson of Redhill was sentenced to 17 months imprisonment after pleading guilty to a burglary, an attempted theft of a property in Reigate and criminal damage. A third man from Crawley was handed an 18 month community order for handling stolen goods.

The Chief Constable of Surrey Police, Nick Ephgrave is to leave the Force.  He has been appointed Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and will take up his new post early next year.  

The current Deputy Chief Constable, Gavin Stephens will assume the responsibilities of Temporary Chief Constable for the county.  

A thorough selection process to appoint a new Chief Constable of Surrey Police will take place in the New Year.

Surrey and Sussex Police have launched their 2018 Christmas crackdown on drink and drug drivers.  

A number of officers are committed to the campaign which began on Saturday and continues until the 1st January.  Details of those convicted including their name, age, address and occupation will be published online. This is in line with previous campaigns to deter people from getting behind the wheel whilst under the influence of drink or drugs.  The consequences of driving under the influence of drink or drugs could include a minimum 12 month ban, a prison sentence, an unlimited fine and a criminal record.

Chief Inspector Andy Gooch of Surrey and Sussex Roads Policing Unit asked drivers to be mindful of the amount of time it takes for substances to leave their body. Drivers can still be over the limit the next morning.  The Sussex Safer Roads Partnership has a morning after calculator on its website where drivers can find out roughly how long it is safe before they can drive.

Sam Gyimah, the MP for East Surrey, resigned as Science and Universities Minister on Friday.  

He quit after Theresa May said the UK was pulling out of the EU’s Galileo satellite navigation system.  The UK wanted to remain part of it but the EU said that as a result of Brexit, it would be banned from extra secure elements of the project such as the part of the system intended for use by government agencies, the armed forces and emergency responders.  The UK has invested £1.24 billion in the project. Galileo is the EU’s version of the US’s GPS and will be used by EU governments, citizens, the military and industry and is due to come online in 2020.

Sam Gyimah is the 10th member of the government to resign over Theresa May’s Brexit deal.