A couple woke up in the middle of the night to find a hooded figure leaning over their baby sleeping in a Moses basket, a court heard on Tuesday.
The hooded figure - Stephen Gerard Connolly - appeared at Belfast Crown Court where he was handed a sentence of two years and eight months.
He will serve half of this in prison, with the remaining half on licence when he is released from jail, Belfast Live reports.
Judge Smyth addressed him directly and said: “I want you to know this. In my view it is difficult to contemplate a more terrifying experience than finding a stranger dressed in black leaning over a vulnerable child in the middle of the night.”
The couple noted a strong smell of alcohol from Connolly, and when the male leapt from his bed and towards Connolly, he fled the bedroom.
The incident continued in the living room, and at this point Connolly shouted that he had a knife and ran at the male resident.
Despite this claim, the male occupant was able to restrain Connolly. A neighbour arrived to offer assistance, and police were called.
Judge Smyth noted that whilst the couple did not sustain any physical injuries, they were both left in fear due to claims Connolly had a knife.
When Connolly was arrested and searched, items that had been stolen from two cars parked in Frenchpark Street, including a yellow handbag, were seized.
Judge Smyth told Connolly that while the break-in displayed a lack of sophistication, there was a confrontation with the couple who were woken by the “terror of finding you in close proximity to a sleeping child”.
The judge noted that whilst in custody, Connolly has missed several significant events, including the birth of his first child.
She also noted Connolly had addiction issues - and that he couldn’t remember the events of last August “because of alcohol”.
