Train-hopping Burglar Now Behind Bars

Published on: 22 May, 2026
Updated on: 22 May, 2026

Darren Alleyne

A serial burglar who used the rail network to target homes across Surrey and Sussex has been brought to justice.

Darren Alleyne 44, of no fixed abode, would commute to various towns across the two counties and prowl the streets looking for insecure or empty homes where he could force open a front or back door.

Once inside he would stuff high value items such as electronics or jewellery into a large shopping bag before jumping on a getaway train out of the area. He would later sell the stolen goods on for cash.

Alleyne with a bag thought to be full of swag is caught on camera boarding a train.

Alleyne hoped to outsmart law enforcement by travelling as far afield as Guildford, Woking, Horsham, Reigate, and Merstham, and by regularly changing his mobile phone. For seven months (July 2025 to March 2026) it seemed his plan was working.

However, he was unable to evade CCTV and doorbell footage, which Surrey officers were able to recover, showing him at the scene of several crimes.

Officers caught him in Brighton after he travelled there by train. When he was arrested, he had already committed burglaries in the city and was found in possession of items stolen from these addresses.

Alleyne was charged on Wednesday, March 25 with 10 burglaries and two counts of fraud by false representation. He was remanded and later pleaded guilty to all charges. On Friday, May 15 he was sentenced to six years in prison at Guildford Crown Court.

PC Luke Lightburn, from the Proactive Investigation Team, said: “Alleyne literally treated burglary as his job. He would commute regularly by train, find a place to break into, and brazenly travel home with a bag of stolen goods as if nothing had happened.

“Due to the manner of his offending, it took some time to track Alleyne down and pull together all the evidence we needed. I am pleased that, following months of determination and teamwork, we were able to hunt him down and get him behind bars.”