Inches do not spare tall burglar prison

LEEDS, England, June 12 (UPI) -- A 7-foot-4-inch young Englishman, recognized by witnesses outside a burgled house, was sentenced to 11 months in prison this week.

Christopher Lister, 21, of Armley pleaded guilty, admitting he stole a van used in the burglary in November, Armley Today reported. He waited outside the house while his friends stole a plasma television.

The group abandoned both van and television after the van got stuck.

At the time, Lister was on probation after receiving a suspended sentence for dangerous driving. He admitted breaking into two cars while he was out on bail after the burglary.

"This ridiculous obsession with cars has got to stop," Recorder Paul Miller said as he imposed sentence in Leeds Crown Court.

Lister's lawyer, Richard Wright, asked for a non-custodial sentence, saying Lister's outsize body will make his life behind bars unusually difficult.

Lister, nicknamed Stretch, is one of the tallest men in England and only 2 inches shorter than the current record-holder.