A burglar has been jailed for five years after he left traces of his DNA at the scene of his crime in Wickham.

William Westbrook, 55, from Bridgend, Wales, pleaded guilty to one count of burglary, one count of fraud and one count of handling stolen goods.

Winchester Crown Court heard how Westbrook broke into the conservatory of a home in Wykeham Field, Wickham, overnight on September 30.

He was unable to get into the rest of the house and left empty handed through one of the windows.

Forensic investigations at the scene found some DNA around one of the windows and tests matched this to Westbrook.

The court was also told that Westbrook was identified on CCTV using a bank card which had been stolen from a house in Lynch Hill Park, Whitchurch between October 4 and October 8.

Last Wednesday Westbrook admitted the offences and was sentenced to a total of five years in prison.

PC Craig Robinson, from the Operation Hawk team based in Basingstoke, said: “Westbrook did not care about what impact his selfish actions would have on his victims.

“We hope this sentence will come as some reassurance to them and other residents that he no longer poses any threat now that he is behind bars.

“We know how devastating it can be when someone invades your home, so we will do everything we can to bring those responsible to justice.”