A thief who stole a windscreen from a car was caught when he left fingerprints at the scene.

Brent Shingler, 21, of Golden Hill in Whitstable, was part of a gang of three that targeted a car parked outside a pub in Wickhambreaux near Canterbury.

The trio made off with the windscreen worth £200, as well as wheel trims worth £100 and a £5 can of spray paint - but Shingler was the only one not wearing gloves.

A member of the public called the police to report that two cars had been damaged, and when crime scene investigators arrived, they found a fingerprint that was later matched to Shingler.

He appeared at Canterbury Magistrates’ Court on Monday (Aug 19), where he pleaded guilty to stealing from the car between May 17 and 18 this year, when the owner Geoffrey Cooke was on holiday.

Prosecuting, Julie Farbrace said Shingler had been travelling in a Citreon Saxo with two other men, when one of them said he needed a new windscreen.

The group then decided to drive around looking for a similar car from which they could steal one.

While Shingler admitted to helping with the theft, he said he did not initially know what his friends were plotting, and naively went along with it.

The two other men were never arrested or charged in relation to the theft.

Magistrates ordered Shingler to pay £305 in compensation to his victim, as well as £205 in fines and court costs.