A clumsy burglar who raided Domino's and Costa endured a slice of misfortune - after tripping himself up while fleeing from police.
Luke Brice smashed his way into the pizza premises in Houghton-le-Spring shortly after 5am on October 21 and stole mobile phones and two till draws.
A short time later, police were contacted by a member of the public who could hear a suspicious banging noise in the Newbottle Street area.
That turned out to be Brice smashing up one of the stolen till draws with a hammer.
Officers were swiftly sent to the scene, and within minutes, police spotted the 20-year-old inside Costa on the same street which had also been broken into.
Realising he had been rumbled, Brice tried to flee on foot - only to trip over a step and fall to the floor.
He was subsequently detained by officers and was later charged with both offences.
Brice, of Woodburn Drive, Houghton-le-Spring, pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary when he appeared before magistrates in South Tyneside on November 5.
He will return to the dock next month when a decision will be taken to either sentence him at the same court or have the case passed on to Newcastle Crown Court.
Detective Sergeant Chris Raper-Smith, who leads Northumbria Police ’s Southern Burglary Team, said: “This was a case of a selfish burglar who targeted two business premises on the same morning for purely selfish gain.
“We were initially alerted to the incidents when a member of the public did the right thing by contacting us after hearing something suspicious. That decision allowed us to deploy officers within minutes and catch Brice in the act.
“It was then a case of excellent policing between a number of officers as we recovered stolen property and detained Brice – who no doubt suffered bruises to his leg and his ego after tripping himself up.
“We will not tolerate this type of criminality and I hope this swift outcome offers reassurance to our businesses and the public. If you see or hear anything suspicious, as the resident did in this case, please pick up the phone and tell us.”
Based at Southwick police station, the Southern Burglary team are tasked with reviewing every break-in across Sunderland and South Tyneside and bringing offenders to justice.
They also work hand-in-hand with the force’s neighbourhood teams and other departments in order to monitor trends, tackle prolific burglars and offer crime prevention advice to the community.
