A DEFIANT pensioner repeatedly whacked an intruder with a walking stick after confronting him in her home in the middle of the night.

Doris Thiele, 84, refused to be intimidated when she caught serial burglar Leon Ingram searching the house she shares with her daughter Helen.

The two woman were furious at seeing their home invaded and grabbed hold of Ingram to stop him getting away.

He struggled to break free during an eight-minute tussle that began in an upstairs room and ended in the conservatory.

At one point Mrs Thiele grabbed her late father’s walking stick, which was hanging over the banister, and struck Ingram several times as he continued to wrestle with her daughter.

He eventually got away by head-butting his way through a glass door, gashing his head in the process.

Police arrived minutes later and followed the trail of blood to a nearby flat, where Ingram was arrested.

Mrs Thiele and her daughter were later presented with police bravery awards for tackling the intruder and ending a one-man crimewave.

Ingram, of Andrew Lane, New Milton, admitted burglary when he appeared at Southampton Crown Court.

The 34-year-old heroin user, who had 32 previous convictions, was jailed for three years by Recorder Adam Feest, who took four other burglaries and four shoplifting offences into consideration.

Describing Ingram’s tussle with Mrs Thiele and her daughter, he said: “You threw your weight around with complete disregard for their safety.”

In an impact statement Helen Thiele, 59, an administrator at the Lymington New Forest Hospital, said: “I want this man to know that walking away with no thought for the devastation he has caused me and my mother is something I cannot understand.”

The break-in occurred at the family home in Ashley, New Milton, Speaking after the case Doris Thiele said she woke up at 3am and realised that one of the upstairs lights was on. Thinking her daughter might be ill she got up to investigate and discovered Ingram searching the spare bedroom.

“I decided to stand my ground but screamed when he came towards me,” she said. “My daughter rushed out of her room and put her armaround his neck. He struggled to get away but I clung to his clothing.”

Mrs Thiele said Ingram managed to get downstairs but lost his bearings and ended up in the lounge before rushing into the kitchen.

She added: “He kept shouting ‘wrong house – let me go’ but I grabbed my father’s walking stick and kept hitting him. We weren’t going to let him go and he knew it.”

Ingram eventually fled through the conservatory after deliberately smashing his head against a glass door in his desperation to escape.

Mrs Thiele worked for the Australian Air Force in London at the end of the Second World War and later became a civil servant.

She was widowed when her daughter was only five years old and worked long hours to keep a roof over their heads.

“I’ve worked hard all my life and can’t abide the thought of someone coming along and trying to take it from you,” she said.

Mrs Thiele, who was badly bruised in her encounter with Ingram, added: “I’m amazed at myself and my daughter, who was wonderful.”

In court David Reid, mitigating, said Ingram “felt terrible”

about scaring Mrs Thiele and had sent her a letter of apology.

He added: “In interview he admitted the other offences to wipe the slate clean. He has done his best to help recover items he has stolen, including taking police to pawnbrokers.”

Asked about Ingram’s threeyear sentence Mrs Thiele told the Daily Echo: “I think it should have been a bit more. The whole thing was a nightmare. I’m still a bag of nerves.”

Bravery Award

MRS Thiele and her daughter, pictured right, were subsequently presented with police bravery awards by BBC South presenter Laura Trant.

The citation reads: “You are commended for your bravery in restraining a persistent house burglar who entered your home while you were asleep.

“You courageously confronted the burglar and your valiant efforts resulted in the burglar promptly vacating your home while leaving behind valuable forensic evidence which led to his identification and bringing to an end a series of similar burglaries.”