A'SICK' career criminal with a'perversion involving women's underwear' and his brother -'an accomplished specialist in offences of deception' - have been sentenced to 15 years in jail.

Their crimes included a string of burglaries - followed up by obscene phone calls to the victims.

David John Whaley, aged 40, originally from Sully, was sentenced to 10 years after he admitted carrying out 23 burglaries in the Newport area between September and December 2004.

His brother, Robert Wilfred Whaley, aged 52, of the Royal Buildings, Penarth, was sentenced to five years imprisonment for conspiracy to commit burglary and deception.

The Whaley brothers used the electoral register to target their victims, often women living alone, but it was David Whaley who went into the properties.

Leighton Hughes, prosecuting, said: "David Whaley is an experienced and determined burglar and robber who has a perversion involving women's underwear.

"Robert Whaley is an accomplished specialist in offences of deception.

"David Whaley caused a public nuisance by making regular and repeated obscene telephone calls to women before breaking into their homes.

"During these calls he often referred to the victims by name and used obscene language.

"There were frequent calls after the burglaries when he was in possession of underwear and intimate personal details which he used for his sexual gratification and to frighten, humiliate and intimidate his victims."

The court heard one victim was so frightened she put her house up for sale.

She no longer sought any sort of romantic relationship as her confidence was shattered and her 14-year-old daughter was so deeply affected she was referred to a child psychologist.

Judge Stephen Hopkins QC told David Whaley: "You are a dangerous and sick man and society needs protecting from you."

A significant quantity of property stolen was recovered from the homes of the two defendants.

Stolen items found at Robert Whaley's Penarth home included a Ventura DVD player, six driving licences, a forged passport bearing Robert Whaley's photograph, an E111 form, forged sheets of American Express travellers' cheques, a completed First Direct loan application completed in the name of one of the burglary victims, a forged Netherlands driving licence and computer equipment and disks.

Other stolen items included electronic equipment, jewellery, watches, chequebooks and guarantee cards and women's underwear.

Robert Whaley admitted ordering specialised paper from a company in Great Yarmouth with the intention of creating counterfeit American Express travellers' cheques.

He told the police he wanted to make enough money to retire in the sun.

A copy of the electoral register for Newport was also recovered from the home of Robert Whaley.

The fingerprints of David Whaley were lifted from pages which included entries for the occupants of a number of burgled properties in Newport.

David Whaley has a string of convictions dating back to 1978 when he appeared before Barry Youth Court, aged 13, charged with burglary.

In 1992 David Whaley was sentenced to 13 years imprisonment by a German court for the robbery of five banks.

In one robbery he used a gas gun containing a blank cartridge and stole 23,860 Deutschmarks.