A man and a teenager who have been charged with 19 offences of conspiracy to commit burglary across the east of England appeared in court yesterday.

James Kerrigan, 35, of no fixed address and a 16-year-old boy from Harrow, who cannot be named for legal reasons, were arrested on Sunday, 23 June.

The pair, who have been remanded appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court on Tuesday, June 25.

It follows reports of burglaries at assisted living facilities across Essex, Hertfordshire, Surrey, Cambridge and Hampshire between May and June this year.

In Essex, it is alleged that properties in Loughton, Ongar, Harlow, Basildon, Braintree and Brentwood were targeted.