Burglar changes plea after
his encounter with Christ
Hatfield Elim member Steve Cattell found
freedom after being encouraged to speak
the truth and admit his guilt in court
A man who has spent half his life Steve, 49, found it impossible to stop
‘I praise God for
in prison was looking at another burgling homes.
long stretch when faced with bur-
the life I have now.
glary and drug charges. ‘It is an addictive lifestyle and very
difficult to break. But our 12-step
I’m free and, as
But an encounter with Christ encour- programme does change lives. People
the years go on,
aged Steve Cattell to speak the truth need fellowship to help them recover
and change his plea to guilty, as a from whatever addiction they have.
life gets better
result of which he was given a sus-
and better.’
pended sentence. ‘Since I was 15, I repeatedly asked
for help to stop offending because I
However, the biggest change in his life is couldn’t do it by myself. I wanted to Paul, his friend, urged him, ‘If you tell
that a heart full of hate was replaced by burgle every property I saw.’ the truth, the Lord will set you free’ –
love – his long-suffering wife Natalie is roughly quoting words from the Bible.
also now a Christian and he now spends Steve was first locked up at the age of
his time urging others to go straight. ten and began to hate the world. So Steve duly signed a statement
admitting a vast amount of
He helps to lead a programme called ‘Love had no meaning whatsoever. I crimes and was told
Offenders Anonymous, run on similar hated what people were doing to me
lines to those dealing with alcoholics and I wanted to become a one-man
and drug addicts, as he believes crime crime-wave and get back at society.’
can become an addiction. He himself
has spent 24 years behind bars – half
of them in solitary confinement as he
was so hard to control – after becom-
ing ‘addicted’ to burglary.
During the short drive between his
local station and his home in Hod-
desdon, Hertfordshire, Steve can point Then one day a partner-in-crime be-
out at least 60 houses he has robbed. came a Christian. Not only did he get
Now he sees himself as a ‘recovering’ converted but he also successfully
crime junkie. came off heroin through prayer.
6 www.elim.org.uk
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