A burglar who raided a home while the owner was asleep was caught after leaving a fingerprint on a bottle of alcohol.

The owner of a property at Earlham Road, Norwich had gone to bed at about 1am on June 4 last year when Nathan Pitchford, 42, struck.

Norwich Crown Court heard a number of items, including a wallet, bank cards and headphones, were taken in the burglary.

Hugh Vass, prosecuting, said the defendant’s finger print had been found on a bottle of Ouzo which had been bought from Greece.

Mr Vass said while on bail for the burglary Pitchford committed further offences, including burglaries at properties at Bull Close Road, Norwich, Esdelle Street, Norwich on October 6 last year and at Stacey Road on October 7 last year.

Mr Vass said at the burglary in Esdelle Street Pitchford had tried to get in a bathroom window and was disturbed so ran off but left a fingerprint at the scene.

In the Stacey Road raid Pitchford again got in through a bathroom window and stole items, including an X-Box.

Pitchford, of no fixed address, appeared in court for sentence on Tuesday (January 5) having previously admitted the burglaries as well as four counts of fraud on October 8 last year, having used bank cards stolen in the burglaries to buy items at stores in Norwich.

He also admitted two counts of damaging property, both on October 8, one of assaulting a police officer on the same date and one of failing to attend court on July 27.

Jailing Pitchford for a total of three years and 14 days, Recorder Douglas Edward QC said an in immediate custodial sentence for a series of burglaries was unavoidable.

Dan Taylor, mitigating, said Pitchford had a “dispiriting record of offending” and pointed to an “extremely difficult childhood” during which he suffered physical abuse.

Mr Taylor said he had struggled to come to terms with those early difficulties.

He said the defendant latterly struggled with a miscarriage suffered by his partner about 24 months ago after which he fell back into old habits and class A drug addiction.