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The family of burglary victim Viv Myers turned sleuths after a thief broke into their Whitstable home.
Burglar Charlie Henley, 21, thought he had escaped justice after snatching two laptop computers, jewellery, a camera and tobacco which he then sold for cash.
But a court heard that he had not counted on the Myers family’s detective skills in tracking one of the laptops through special software called Team Viewer.
Prosecutor Richard Cherrill told Canterbury Crown Court how Mrs Myer’s son-in-law Kim Covil spotted the computer accessing the internet more than six months later.
The family were able to tell police where the computer was after it had been bought legitimately from a Herne Bay shop called Cash Transfer.
Mr Cherrill said the company’s records were scoured and it led to Henley, who had provided his photograph when he sold the stolen computer.
Henley, of Lucerne Court, Seasalter, was arrested and admitted burglary at the house in Faversham Road.
The prosecutor said: “The occupants had gone out shopping on the afternoon of October 25 and on their return found a window had been smashed and items worth £2,825 taken, together with £100.
“One of the stolen laptops had made its way through second hand shops but the son-in-law of the residents was able to access information about who was using it and that is what led to the laptop being located.
“The defendant immediately admitted what he had done and was remorseful,” he added.
He later confessed to doing three more daytime break-ins in the same area in September and October last year, when items totalling £1,000 were taken. He told police officers he had “gone off the road” after losing his girlfriend and his painting and decorating job.
Henley’s barrister Dominic Webber said the defendant was “genuinely remorseful” and wanted to pay the family compensation.
Compensation
He added: “He wants to pay them back as soon as possible.”
Henley, who admitted the burglary and asked for three similar cases to be considered, was given a 15-month jail sentence suspended for two years.
“The worst thing about people breaking into other people’s houses is not necessarily the financial loss, but the deep fear that someone has been in the house" - Judge Nigel Van Der Bijl
He was also ordered to do 250 hours of unpaid work and pay £1,650 in compensation within a year to the Myers.
Judge Nigel Van Der Bijl told him: “I don’t know what was going through your mind when you did these burglaries.
“The worst thing about people breaking into other people’s houses is not necessarily the financial loss, but the deep fear that someone has been in the house and those feelings can last quite a long time.
“It is an invasion of their privacy.”
The judge said Henley had been “sufficiently remorseful” for the prison sentence to be suspended, adding: “I am going to give you a chance.”
He then urged the thief to cut back on his drinking to raise money to pay the compensation.
