Prolific burglar Jamie Downard in the dock of the Hamilton District Court today, clutching a novel by writer, Jack Higgins, when he was jailed for further burglaries from around April and May this year. Photo / Belinda Feek
Prolific burglar Jamie Downard in the dock of the Hamilton District Court today, clutching a novel by writer, Jack Higgins, when he was jailed for further burglaries from around April and May this year. Photo / Belinda Feek
A man with nearly 80 burglary convictions has left a raft of victims after stealing their belongings to repay a $13,000 drug debt.
James Keith Downard, also known as Jamie, targeted multiple homes around Hamilton during a three-and-a-half-week period earlier this year. The 47-year-old, who once stole a child’s piggybank, would then sell his loot soon after.
In Hamilton District Court today, Judge Glen Marshall told him his victims had been left “incredibly distressed” at the losses they’d had to bear.
“What’s really hurt them, and is something they are very upset about is that a lot of the jewellery ... were family heirlooms that had been handed down, sometimes involving two generations and they were to be passed on.
“As one [victim] said, ‘it’s a very hard loss to bear’.
Downard, through counsel Joshua De Vries, had hoped to speak to the judge to express his remorse but Judge Marshall told De Vries to talk on his behalf.
Noting the victim’s comments they now felt unsafe in their homes, De Vries said Downard “didn’t intend for anybody to feel unsafe in their home”.
He said Downard also felt unsafe in prison as he’d already been attacked due to the outstanding drug debt that fuelled the offending.
Downard targeted multiple homes around Hamilton between April 26 and May 21.
He gained access to two Hamilton East apartments through a neighbouring construction site and got in through a rear ranchslider, stealing items including jewellery and alcohol.
The following morning, he fled with jewellery, watches and technology, stolen from a Frankton home.
On April 28, he received $2000 from Cash Converters for a gold ring he’d stolen. On May 5, he was caught on CCTV breaking in through a bedroom window of a St Andrews home. He stole jewellery, a watch, and a drone in a hard carry case, which he sold to an associate.
Five days later, he entered the yard of an Ulster St property, but the homeowner was alerted by a security system to Downard walking along the back of the property holding a piece of paper and a mobile phone.
Jamie Downard, 47, pictured on the property of one of his Hamilton victims earlier this year. Photo / Waikato police
He was only able to open a kitchen window about 1cm, and nothing was taken, so he went to a neighbouring house and stole more jewellery and other valuable items, before dropping his cell phone in the backyard.
He also broke into a River Rd property through a laundry window, and despite the security system being on, he crawled around to try to avoid detection before stealing jewellery and foreign currency.
He went to Lotus Foreign Exchange where he converted Australian and US dollars to receive $813.10.
When spoken to by police, Downard admitted his crimes, stating he did the burglaries to repay a $13,000 drug debt.
Downard has a prolific burglary and dishonesty history, with his offending stretching to Napier, throughout the Waikato, and to Taupō.
In 2020 he was jailed for six years and eight months on 43 charges, including stealing a child’s piggy bank.
Jamie Downard, 47, in the dock of the Hamilton District Court today when he was jailed for burglaries in the Hamilton area in April and May this year. Photo / Belinda Feek
He was granted parole to Te Awamutu earlier this year before he was back at it again.
‘Driven by meth’
De Vries also addressed comments in a pre-sentence report that Downard seemed to be repeating the same rhetoric this time, as he did last time.
De Vries said the comments were the same as Downard’s offending was again fuelled by his meth addiction.
However, since he’d been in custody he had started a drug treatment programme with Odyssey House and had been diagnosed with ADHD but was yet to be medicated.
“He’s 47 now. This has been going on since he was a very young man ... [he wants to] start a different life when he is eventually released.”
Judge Marshall said most of what Downard had stolen was not covered by insurance and he had no way of paying any reparation.
He’d also now notched up 77 convictions for burglary alone and appeared to have “burnt your bridges with family support” due to his offending and drug addiction.
Downard was sentenced to 3 years and 5 months in prison.
Belinda Feek is an Open Justice reporter based in Waikato. She has worked at NZME for nine years and has been a journalist for 20.
