A burglar left a trail of forensic clues behind after drilling his way into a safe and stealing cash at a branch of Pound Bakery.
Michael Farrer, 35, of South Terrace, Bury, slipped into the budget bakery via the roof on Church Street in Runcorn some time after 5pm on Saturday, February 1, last year.
Once inside, Farrer pulled a safe into the middle of the room and drilled a large hole into it, before swiping £1,300 in cash and a safe worth £1,100.
He also grabbed some labels and a bag of till rolls, which he used to cover the smoke alarm.
A member of staff discovered the break-in the following morning and reported it to the police, who found Farrer’s DNA on the labels and the bag used on the smoke alarm.
Farrer later pleaded guilty to burglary and was sentenced to one year and nine months behind bars at Chester Crown Court on Friday.
He must also pay a £149 victim surcharge.
The ECHO had attended previous court hearings when he was due to be sentenced but which were adjourned due to the defendant displaying Covid-19 symptoms.
After Farrer’s sentencing, Detective Sergeant Rob McLoughlin, from Runcorn Local Policing Unit, said: “Michael Farrer was determined to break into this bakery store and came equipped to steal money from inside the safe.
“After it was reported to police we conducted a thorough investigation and found fingerprints on numerous items he had touched when trying to conceal the smoke alarm.
“This led to Farrer being identified as the suspect and he was swiftly arrested, charged and has since admitted to his crime in court where he has been rightly punished.”
